Rescued hostage Noa Argamani recounts near-lynching in Gaza, being disguised as Palestinian: report
Rescued Israeli hostage Noa Argamani, who became the symbol of the Oct. 7 terrorist attack on the Jewish state after her kidnapping went viral, said she thought four times she was going to die — and was dressed as a Palestinian woman as she was moved from house to house around Gaza, according to a report.
Argamani, a China-born Israeli citizen, said she thought she was going to be killed when Hamas stormed the Nova Music Festival on Oct. 7, per Channel 13, where the terror group slaughtered more than 360 people.
While Argamani survived the initial assault — with her screams of terror uploaded on social media as she was put on the back of a motorcycle and hauled off to Gaza — the 26-year-old said she was certain that she would be publicly lynched by the crowd that awaited her, she told family members, according to Israel’s Channel 13.
Later, she said she nearly died, again, after Israeli missiles struck the compound she was being held in, she told family members.
“I saw the missile enter the house; I was sure I was going to die,” she reportedly said.
“I thought that was it, but I stayed alive,” Argamani added.
Argamani appeared to be referencing the Israeli strike that allegedly killed fellow hostages Yossi Sharabi and Itai Svirsky, which she was forced to announce in a cruel propaganda video released by the terror group in January that displayed their corpses.
She also recounted how she believed she was going to die in the chaos of the operation that led to her rescue on Saturday.
Along with the near-death experiences, Argamani recalled how she was forced to move between several apartments during her captivity, which also spared her the fate of being kept inside Hamas’ dark and winding tunnel network like other hostages.
On the rare opportunities she was allowed to go outside, she said, she was forced to dress like a Palestinian woman.
Argamani was one of four Nova festival hostages rescued on Saturday after Israeli forces stormed two Hamas-run buildings in central Gaza’s Nuseirat refugee camp, according to the Israeli military.
The other hostages rescued during the Israeli raid — which involved the Israel Defense Forces, Shin Bet and counterterrorism police officers — were Almog Meir Jan, 21, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 40.
Saturday’s raid was the largest single recovery of Hamas hostages, bringing the total number rescued to seven.
However, the raid has been the subject of major international criticism after the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said the raid on the Nuseirat refugee camp killed 274 Palestinians, including dozens of children.
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan confirmed at least some civilians were killed in the raid.
“We do know this … Innocent people were tragically killed in this operation,” he told CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday. “And that is heartbreaking. That is tragic.”
After returning to Israel, Argamani was seen embracing her father, Yakov, and sharing a pair of Coca-Colas in a hospital room at the Sheba Medical Center near Tel Aviv.
She also reunited with her mother, Liora, who is battling stage four brain cancer and had publicly stated she was praying to see her daughter again before she dies.
