February 12, 2024 Israel-Hamas war

Two hostages have been rescued in an overnight Israeli military raid on Hamas targets in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson told reporters on Monday.

Here's what we know so far:

Who are the hostages? The hostages are 60-year-old Fernando Simon Marman and 70-year-old Louis Har, who were both taken 128 days ago during Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel. They are dual Israel-Argentine nationals, according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.

The rescue operation: IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said that special forces entered a building in the center of Rafah at 1:49 a.m. local time (6:49 p.m. ET).

Status of hostages: The hostages are in good medical condition and have been transferred to Sheba Medical Center in Tel HaShomer. Their family members say they are in relatively good condition, but are showing signs of what they went through, including weight loss.

Deadly airstrikes in Rafah: The IDF confirmed Monday that they conducted "a series of strikes" on targets in the area of Shaboura, a district of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. 

The Ministry of Health in Hamas-run Gaza told CNN Monday that at least 94 people were killed in overnight Israeli strikes on the city of Rafah. The Ministry also said it is still in the process of retrieving and identifying bodies, and that the death toll is expected to increase.

The intense bombings were part of an operation by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to free two hostages held captive by Hamas. Earlier, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said more than 100 people had been killed by overnight strikes, in Rafah. The PRCS added more people are still trapped under rubble and that the death toll may increase.

Egypt has increased fortifications along its border with Gaza and deployed more troops and machinery in North Sinai as a “precautionary measure" ahead of an expected Israeli ground operation in Rafah in Gaza, two security officials told CNN.

Checkpoints leading to the Rafah border crossing on the Egyptian side were boosted with more soldiers and the areas around the main road were being prepared for the deployment of tanks and military machinery, an eyewitness told CNN. 

A CNN team documented parked military vehicles along the road leading to the border back in November, but it’s unclear how large the new deployments will be.

Egyptian military helicopters were also seen flying on the Egyptian side in the past three days, according to an eyewitness in Egypt and social media videos shot from the Gaza side of the border.

The Ministry of Health in Hamas-run Gaza told CNN Monday that at least 94 people were killed in overnight Israeli strikes on the city of Rafah.

The Ministry also said it is still in the process of retrieving and identifying bodies, and that the death toll is expected to increase.

The intense bombings were part of an operation by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to free two hostages held captive by Hamas.

Earlier, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said more than 100 people had been killed by overnight strikes, in Rafah. The PRCS added more people are still trapped under rubble and that the death toll may increase.

The Ministry of Health in Gaza only updates death toll numbers after the bodies have been identified, which explains a discrepancy with the numbers reported by the Palestinian Red Crescent Society. 

The United Kingdom has announced new sanctions against four “extremist Israeli settlers,” saying they have committed human rights abuses in the West Bank against Palestinian communities.

The statement from the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said the settlers “violently attacked Palestinians in the occupied West Bank,” using physical aggression, threatening families at gunpoint, and destroying property in a “targeted and calculated effort to displace Palestinian communities.”

The four individuals sanctioned are all males aged between 21 and 31. They have been named as Moshe Sharvit, Yinon Levy, Zvi Bar Yosef, and Ely Federman.

British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said the sanctions “place restrictions on those involved in some of the most egregious abuses of human rights.”

He said settlers are forcing Palestinian people off land that is “rightfully theirs.”

Israel has rescued two hostages in an operation in the city of Rafah, southern Gaza, where its air force has also carried out strikes that have killed at least 100 people, according to the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS).

Concerns are growing over the fate of more than a million displaced Gazans in the city, where Israel is planning a ground operation.

Here are the latest developments:

Relatives of hostages freed by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) during an overnight military raid in Gaza were elated to have their family members back, and told CNN the news came as a total surprise.

“It’s a very special day today, at least for our family,” Idan Begerano, Louis Har’s son-in-law told CNN’s Nic Robertson in an interview Monday.

Begerano said their family, and the family of Fernando Marman — the other rescued hostage — was woken at 3:30 a.m. local time to a simple phone call:

"Louis is here, Fernando is here, please come to the hospital we’ve got them,” Begerano explained. 

The two men are in relatively good condition but showing signs of what they went through, their families say. “The first moment of the hug I couldn’t believe I was hugging him, I was so happy,” Marman’s niece, Geffen Sigal Ilan said.

Begerano described the pair as "very thin," adding that "they’re walking, but they’re still running high on adrenaline, so we’ll only see how good or bad they are physically, or mentally in some days."

Despite their good fortune, the relatives did not forget those still held by Hamas in Gaza. “Now, I’m thinking about the 134 hostages that are waiting. I want them to also be released, as soon as possible,” Ilan said.

For his part, Begerano called on both sides to strike a deal. “Personally, I don’t believe we can take out all the 134 hostages only by military action, at one stage or another you need to strike a deal,” he explained.

The Netherlands must stop the export of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel within seven days, a Dutch court ruled on Monday, citing concerns that they could be used to violate international law as part of the Israeli campaign in Gaza.

“This means that the export of F-35 parts from the Netherlands to Israel has to be stopped.”

Three non-governmental organizations — Oxfam Novib, Pax for Peace, and The Rights Forum — appealed a previous Dutch court decision that allowed the continued export of F-35 parts to Israel.

On Monday, The Hague Court of Appeal said that under several international regulations that the Netherlands is a party to, the country must prevent the export of military equipment if there is a “clear risk of serious violations of international humanitarian law.”

The court said that Israel does not take “take sufficient account of the consequences of its attacks for the civilian population,” adding that its attacks on Gaza have resulted in a “disproportionate number of civilian casualties.”

The European Union is “extremely concerned” about the situation in Rafah, the bloc’s most senior diplomat, Josep Borrell, told reporters on Monday.

His comments come as EU ministers meet to discuss the Israel-Hamas conflict, as well as accusations against the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, the UN's main agency working with Palestinians.

Remember: In January, Israel accused some of UNRWA’s staff members of involvement in Hamas’ October 7 terror attacks, though few details to support these allegations have been released.

“Allegations [have] to be verified,” the diplomat said. “The presumption of innocence is valid for everyone, at any time, even for UNRWA.”

Borrell said that “many” EU ministers have written to him, urging him to ask Israel to stop preventing humanitarian aid from reaching Gaza.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) coordinated a ground and air operation on Hamas targets in Rafah to extract two hostages, a spokesperson told reporters Monday.

"In a retrieval joint operation of IDF, security forces and special police forces, the special police unit, we retrieved Louis Har and Fernando Marman who were kidnapped by Hamas on October 7 from Nir Ytzhak," said spokesman Daniel Hagari.

Hagari said that special forces entered a building in the center of Rafah at 1:49 a.m. local time (6:49 p.m. ET).

"At 1:50am, the air cover started the action by the Air Force and the southern command in order to allow the forces to detach and to hit Hamas terrorists in the area," he added.

Within minutes, the two hostages were escorted out under fire from Hamas fighters and then taken to a "safe spot" in Rafah to get medical attention, Hagari added.

They were then airlifted out of Gaza by helicopter to the Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer, Israel.

Hagari said the "complex" operation had been planned for a "long time."

"They were intentionally held in the middle of a civilian neighborhood, inside a civilian building, to try and prevent us from rescuing them. But we did," Hagari said in a later statement released in English. "This rescue mission underscores the importance of our ground operation in Gaza, including Rafah, when conditions allow."

The Palestine Red Crescent Society said Monday that more than 100 people had been killed by Israeli air strikes on Rafah overnight.

More people are believed to remain trapped in the rubble of collapsed buildings.

Some context: Nir Yitzhak was one of multiple kibbutzim close to the border with Gaza that came under attack by Hamas militants during their October 7 attack that saw about 1,200 people killed and more than 240 taken hostage. Israel’s response has wrought widespread devastation across Gaza. The Hamas-controlled health ministry in Gaza has said the death toll since October 7 has risen to more than 27,500.