Prominent Israeli hostage Noa Argamani rescued on father’s birthday

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Noa Argamani, a 25-year-old university student who was kidnapped by Hamas at the Nova music festival and taken into Gaza on a motorcycle, was among four Israeli hostages rescued Saturday.

Israeli forces rescued Argamani, Almog Meir, 21, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 40, on Saturday morning. She was seen smiling widely after being reunited with her father. It was his birthday.

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Argamani was one of the highest-profile hostages held by the terror group. Her traumatic kidnapping had been captured and released by Hamas on social media, and she was seen in subsequent Hamas propaganda videos.

In the first video, taken by the terrorists who attacked Nova, Argamani and her partner Avinatan Or, were seen being dragged away by their captors.

Argamani, her face contorted in panic, shouts “No, no!” in Hebrew while being forced onto a motorbike, sandwiched between two gunmen. She reaches out for Or, whose hands are bound behind his back as a group of militants march him forward.

She was later seen in a January video released by Hamas. In it, she says she was injured in her head and body by shrapnel and pleads for Israel to bring the hostages home.

Her mother, Liora Argamani, is battling Stage 4 brain cancer and made a video plea in December to be reunited with her daughter. She says in the video, which was shared by Israel’s government, that she’s unsure how much time she has left.

“I don’t know how long I have left,” Argamani said. “I wish for the chance to see my Noa at home.”

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According to a Washington Post report, Aragamani has started a course of experimental drugs, hoping it will keep her alive long enough to see her daughter again.

In a message to her daughter, Aragmani said, “Noa, I want to tell you, if I don’t get to see you, please know that I love you very much. Please know we did everything we could to get you released.”

In an interview with CBS News at the time, Argamani’s father, Yaakov, described his daughter as “an amazing person. A sweet child.”

On Saturday, videos shared on social media showed Aragmani smiling after being reunited with her father. A photo showed them both drinking a Coke. She was reported to be in stable condition.

 Her boyfriend remains a Hamas hostage.

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