Israel said its forces rescued four hostages alive from a Gaza refugee camp on Saturday, after an operation that militant group Hamas said left 210 of Palestinians dead and wounded.
The four had been kidnapped by Hamas from the Nova music festival during the Islamists鈥� October 7 attacks that sparked war with Israel, the army said.
Noa Argamani, 26, Almog Meir Jan, 22, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 41, had been rescued from two separate buildings 鈥榠n the heart of Nuseirat鈥� in a 鈥榗omplex聽 daytime operation鈥�, the military said, adding they were in 鈥榞ood medical condition鈥�.
They were among 251 captives seized by the militants in their October attack on southern Israel. There are now 116 hostages remaining in Gaza, including 41 the army says are dead.
Footage posted on social media showed Argamani emotionally reuniting with her father after her rescue, as well as beachgoers erupting into cheers in Tel Aviv when a lifeguard announced the four had been freed.
Campaign group the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which has pressed Israel鈥檚 government to reach a deal that would free the captives, hailed the rescue as a 鈥榤iraculous triumph鈥�.
UNRWA, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees that ran the school, condemned Israel for striking a facility it said had been housing 6,000 displaced people.
Israel鈥檚 military offensive has killed at least 36,801 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory鈥檚 health ministry.
Hamas鈥檚 government media office said at least 210 people were killed Saturday in Israeli attacks on a central Gaza refugee camp from which four hostages were rescued.
鈥楾he number of victims from the Israeli occupation鈥檚 massacre in the Nuseirat camp has risen to 210 martyrs and more than 400 wounded,鈥� the press office said in a statement.
It came after the Israeli army announced the rescue of four Israeli hostages in Nuseirat earlier Saturday in an operation that they said took place 鈥榰nder fire鈥�.
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh vowed to keep fighting after the Israeli attack on the camp.
鈥極ur people will not surrender, and the resistance will continue to defend our rights in the face of this criminal enemy,鈥� Haniyeh said in a statement.
The Hamas government had in an earlier statement reported a toll of 94 killed in and around Nuseirat, adding that they had been taken to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs鈥� hospital in Deir al-Balah.
It said the hospital was 鈥榰nable to accomodate the number of martyrs and wounded鈥�, appealing for the international community and aid organisations for help.
Israel faced growing diplomatic isolation, with international court cases accusing it of war crimes and several European countries recognising a Palestinian state.
Israel鈥檚 UN envoy, Gilad Erdan, said Friday he was 鈥榙isgusted鈥� the Israeli military would be on a United Nations list of countries and armed forces that fail to protect children during war.
A diplomatic source told AFP that Hamas as well as Palestinian Islamic Jihad would also be included in the annual UN report, which highlights human rights violations against children in conflict zones and is expected by the end of June.
Both Hamas and PIJ are designated as terrorist organisations by several countries, including the United States and the European Union.
Netanyahu also faces pressure from within his right-wing government.
After announcement of the hostage rescue, Israeli war cabinet minister Benny Gantz cancelled a news conference that was scheduled for Saturday, his office said, amid speculation he had been planning to resign from the government.
Gantz said last month he would quit the war cabinet if Netanyahu did not approve a post-war plan for Gaza by June 8.
Latest efforts to mediate the first ceasefire in the conflict since a week-long pause in November appear to have stalled a week after US President Joe Biden offered a new roadmap.
Biden said the plan was to halt the fighting for six weeks while hostages are exchanged for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
The plan would also involve the stepped-up delivery of aid into Gaza.
The G7 group of world powers and Arab states have backed the proposal.
Hamas has yet to respond. Israel has expressed openness to discussions but remains committed to destroying the Islamist group.
Major sticking points include Hamas insisting on a permanent truce and full Israeli withdrawal鈥攄emands Israel has rejected.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to visit Israel and key regional partners Egypt, Jordan and Qatar from Monday on his eighth Middle East trip since the war began.
