Israel Says Hostages Were Held In Home Of Journalist Who Wrote For Al Jazeera

Three of the four Israeli hostages who were rescued of Saturday were found in the home of a Gaza-based journalist who had previously written for Al Jazeera.

The hostages, who were captured by Hamas terrorists during the brutal and unprovoked attacks of October 7, were discovered inside the home of Abdallah Aljamal. Aljamal had written for Al Jazeera as recently as 2019 — although the outlet has said that he was never an employee — and had since been writing for The Palestine Chronicle and serving as spokesman for Gaza’s Hamas-controlled labor ministry.

An initial report from Ramy Abdu — founder and chairman of the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor — claimed that Israeli soldiers had raided Aljamal’s home and killed him along with several members of his family.

Israel has confirmed that Aljamal was killed in the Saturday special forces raid that rescued hostages Almog Meir Jan, 21, Andri Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 41 — but made no mention of his family.

“This is further proof that the Hamas terrorist organization uses the civilian population as a human shield,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement after special forces rescued the hostages from Aljamal’s home in Nuseirat — which was located near a refugee camp.

The fourth hostage who was rescued during Saturday’s operations was 26-year-old Noa Argamani, who recounted several instances during her eight months in captivity when she believed she was going to die.

When she first arrived in Gaza, after being snatched off the street at the Nova music festival, she said that she expected to be lynched. Sometime later, she recounted seeing a missile land in the house where she was being held.

“I saw the missile enter the house; I was sure I was going to die,” she said. “I thought that was it, but I stayed alive.”

Finally, the raid that ultimately resulted in her rescue was so chaotic that, for a time, she believed she might not survive it.