Israel’s Military Says 3 Rescued Hostages Were Held in Hamas Member’s Home

Following the Israeli rescue of four hostages in Gaza on Saturday, Israel’s military said that three of them had been held in the home of a member of Hamas, which it said showed that the armed group was using civilian homes to shield its activity.

Israeli special forces, backed by the military, intelligence and air force, raided two buildings in a neighborhood in Nuseirat, a refugee camp in central Gaza on Saturday, rescuing Almog Meir Jan, 22; Andrey Kozlov, 27; and Shlomi Ziv, 41, from the home of Abdallah Aljamal, the military said. A fourth hostage, Noa Argamani, 26, was also freed, apparently from a nearby building.

More than 274 people were killed during the raid, according to Gaza’s health ministry. The Israeli military said that the death toll was less than 100. Neither the Israeli military nor Palestinian health officials provided a breakdown of civilians and combatants killed in the raid.

Mr. Aljamal’s death was confirmed by Gaza’s Government Media Office on Sunday, which said he had worked for the Hamas-affiliated news agency, Palestine Now.

On Sunday, the Israeli military said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app: “The hostages were held captive by Abdallah Aljamal and members of his family in their home. This is further evidence of the deliberate use of civilian homes and buildings by the Hamas terrorist organization to hold Israeli hostages captive in the Gaza Strip.”

Israel’s military has said for months that civilian casualties in Gaza are inevitable because Hamas hides its forces within the population.