‘We have the three hostages’ – Israel Police shows dramatic footage of hostage rescue operation

The Israel Police on Monday published video footage of the dramatic moments when Israeli soldiers reached the three hostages Almog Meir Jan, Andrey Kozlov, and Shlomi Ziv in the Gaza Strip, before bringing them back to Israel.

Soldiers of the police's elite Yamam counter-terror commando and the Shin Bet commando unit carried out a heroic operation on Saturday, infiltrating the Nuseirat camp in central Gaza, and rescuing the three hostages, as well as Noa Argamani, who was held nearby.

In the video, the soldiers can be seen approaching the home of the al-Jamal family, where the journalist and part-time terrorist Abdallah al-Jamal held Meir Jan, Kozlov and Ziv in a separate room.

The Israeli soldiers enter the home as shots ring out in the background. Once in the house, the soldiers storm into a room, where they find the three Israelis cowering, apparently frightened by the explosions in the background.

“Hebrew, Hebrew, where is everyone?” a soldier shouts to the three. “Here, they are here,” another officer says.

After a soldier asks them their name, the hostages confirm their identities. “Three [hostages] are in our hands,” the soldier confirms on the radio.

Recognizing their frightened state, he then tries to calm them saying: “Everything is ok. We have come to rescue you, be calm,” before giving Meir Jan a fist-bump.

Shortly after, the footage shows the three hostages being accompanied out of the house as the forces come under fire.

During the operation to reach the three hostages, the leader of the team, Arnon Zamora, was shot and heavily wounded. He was later transferred to an Israeli hospital but died shortly after. In his honor, the rescue raid was renamed “Operation Arnon.”

The video released by the police ends as the soldiers exit the house. Shortly after, the troops and the rescued hostages reached an army vehicle, which then broke down on the way and came under heavy fire, leading to a drawn-out gun battle.

The IDF also released two videos on Monday showing the three male hostages boarding the military helicopter and footage from onboard as they were flown to Tel Hashomer Hospital in central Israel.