The dual Russian-Israeli citizen was held in captivity since the deadly Hamas attack last year
Russian citizen Andrey Kozlov has thanked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for his rescue from Hamas captivity, where he spent seven months, following the surprise attack on October 7 that left some 1,200 dead and over 250 taken hostage.
Kozlov, 27, who also holds Israeli citizenship, moved to Israel in 2022 and was kidnapped during the Hamas raid on Nova music festival, where he worked as a security guard. On Saturday morning, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched a “high-risk, complex mission” at Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, eventually rescuing four hostages from two separate buildings.
In video footage circulated online, the young man is seen embracing the Israeli PM and thanking him for securing his release.
“Wow. Thank you, thank you!” he told Netanyahu in Russian. “What is happening,” he added in disbelief.
Kozlov has now been transferred to the ‘Sheba’ Tel-HaShomer Medical Center for a health examination. He is accompanied by his younger brother Andrey, while his father is en route to Israel from Russia, according to the report by a Telegram channel Shot.
Kozlov told reporters that he was doing fine. The IDF confirmed that three other released hostaged – Noa Argamani (25), Almog Meir Jan (21), and Shlomi Ziv (40) – are also in “good medical condition.”
The hostage rescue operation on Saturday was conducted “under heavy fire” after the IDF announced that they were targeting “terror infrastructure” in the area. One special forces officer was wounded during the operation and later died in hospital.
Earlier this year, the Russian Foreign Ministry called for the “immediate release” of Kozlov and two other Russian hostages, Alexander Lobanov and Alexander Trufanov.
