Noa Argamani ‘says she and other hostages were kept as SLAVES’: Shock new revelation as IDF also reveal the freed Israeli’s touching first words as she was rescued from Hamas captors
Israeli hostage Noa Argamani, who was freed from the clutches of Hamas in a daring IDF raid last week, told the families of fellow hostages how they were being held as slaves in Gaza, it has been revealed.
Shira Albag, the mother of IDF soldier Liri who was also kidnapped and dragged back to Gaza on October 7, told Israeli media today that Noa explained how their Hamas captors forced them to cook and clean and refused to let them bathe .
“Noa said they were slaves, and so did the (IDF) observers, including Liri,” Albag said. “They cleaned their gardens, washed the dishes and prepared food they couldn’t eat.”
She jokingly joked that Liri, who is still in the Gaza Strip, was kept in a “luxury villa” where she allowed her to shower – but only after a month in captivity.
‘After forty days they took her to the tunnels. It’s much worse. There is only salt water and not much food. No clothes to wear,” she added.
It comes as an Israeli special forces soldier who embarked on the heroic rescue of Noa revealed her first thoughts were of her terminally ill mother Liora, despite being held captive for 245 days without daylight.
The special forces operator said Noa’s first words after being rescued were: “Is my mother still alive?”
After 245 days of captivity, Argamani was rescued on Saturday during an IDF raid that also freed three male prisoners: Almog Meir Jan, 22, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 41. She is seen here hugging her father after being reunited goods. on Saturday
Noa Argamani, one of four Israeli hostages rescued from Gaza by the IDF on Saturday, is pictured hugging her boyfriend’s mother. The 26-year-old was pictured hugging Ditza Or, the mother of Avinatan Or, one of several people taken hostage by Hamas and taken to Gaza on October 7.
Noa Argamani speaks on the phone with Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Saturday
Noa (left) is reunited with her mother, Liora Argamani (right), who is dying of stage four brain cancer
Noa’s mother Liora had contacted US President Joe Biden and urged him to help save her daughter (photo in November 2023)
Noa Argamani is depicted being kidnapped and driven through the desert
An Israeli special forces soldier who embarked on the heroic rescue of Noa revealed that her first thoughts were of her terminally ill mother Liora, despite being held captive for 245 days without daylight.
Shira Albag (L), the mother of IDF soldier Liri (R), who was also kidnapped and dragged back to Gaza on October 7, told Israeli media today that Noa explained how their Hamas captors forced them to cook and clean and refused to allow them to bathe
Members of the Yamam anti-terror unit, which specializes in hostage rescues, revealed the emotional exchange in their first interview since last week’s rescue, published today in Israel.
Elite fighters stormed the building where 26-year-old Noa was being held last week, telling her: ‘Noa, we are here to save you. We’re here to take you home.
“The first question she asked was, ‘Is my mother still alive?’ he told Israeli army radio station Galatz.
“I said yes, she looked at everyone and then asked, ‘Are you sure?’ We said, ‘Yes, Noa, we are here to take you back to your mother.’
He added: ‘She was very scared, very scared, but she cooperated. She was barefoot. One of the fighters put her on his back and then put her in the car.’
The vehicle then raced to the beach where a helicopter would evacuate them, but the car became stuck as a huge gunfight broke out.
They managed to repel the terrorists and get the vehicle moving again before reaching the rendezvous point in the nick of time.
“She was still in shock in the car,” the fighter said. “She still didn’t understand what was going on and then said, ‘I’m still a little scared on the road.’
‘But at least we understood that she was already communicating with us in a good way. One of the fighters also gave her a piece of candy to reduce her stress.”
Noa was rescued along with 21-year-old Almog Meir Jan, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 40, who were all kidnapped from the Nova Festival on October 7.
Noa Argamani is reunited with her father after the daring rescue of four Israeli hostages during Operation Arnon
A screen shows a photo of Noa Argamani who was kidnapped during the deadly October 7 attack and, according to the military, rescued by Israeli forces, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel, June 10, 2024
Argamani was famously seen in a video pleading with the terrorists not to kill her as she was dragged away on the back of a motorcycle
Unbeknownst to her, Argamani became an icon of the fight to free the hostages during her captivity after the video of her kidnapping circulated around the world.
One Israeli rescue unit soldier, Arnon Zmora, was shot in the head and killed while rescuing the three men held 200 meters from Noa.
Noa has been caring for Liora, 61, who has stage four brain cancer, since the incredible rescue.
During her time in captivity, Liora made a series of heartbreaking calls to see her daughter before her death, and the pair enjoyed an emotional reunion in hospital hours after Noa landed.
Israel first received information about the location of the four hostages in the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza, on May 12.
A team of undercover officers were dispatched to smuggle themselves into the area and gather more information, the Jewish Chronicle reported.
A team of undercover soldiers, including women wearing hijabs, then arrived in the area posing as two Gaza families fleeing Israeli bombing.
They pointed to the building where Noa was being held and offered a huge sum of cash to secure a house. They managed to secure a location on the same street within three hours.
Special forces consisting of undercover Yamam and Shin Bet agents surround one of two heavily guarded buildings in Al Nuseirat, Gaza
Helmet camera footage showed Israeli operators rescuing the hostages
After setting up a base just half a mile from where the hostages were being held, the Israeli agents sent information back to Israel that allowed the Yamam fighters to prepare.
‘We knew it was a girl, a hostage. We didn’t know who exactly it was until a day or two before the operation,” said one of the Yamam fighters.
When they discovered Noa’s identity, they had to clear their minds of her emotional personal story.
“I was exposed to the fact that her mother was in the hospital in critical condition,” said another member of the unit. ‘I didn’t know that and it hit me a bit.
“I try to put it aside because my goal is to be focused on the mission and nothing will influence my decisions on the ground.”
Noa came home on her father Yaakov’s 69th birthday.
She appeared to be in good physical condition, but doctors have warned that the road to mental recovery is long.
