Israeli forces have killed Saher Nidal Latfi Sakr, the Hamas operative responsible for kidnapping Noa Argamani during the October 7, 2023, attacks. Argamani was seized at the Nova music festival in southern Israel, where nearly 400 attendees were killed in a large-scale assault by Hamas militants. Footage from the event showed Argamani being taken forcibly on the back of a motorcycle driven by Sakr, while she screamed pleas for her life and reached out to her boyfriend, Avinatan Or, who was also abducted.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) identified Sakr as a key player who supplied weapons to Hamas and cooperated with militants from both Hamas and Islamic Jihad, violating a ceasefire agreement, according to an IDF statement. He was also reportedly connected to global jihadist groups and had recently been involved in planning attacks on Israeli civilians and soldiers. The operation to eliminate Sakr took place in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, where special forces from the Gideonim Unit 33 carried out an airstrike, successfully killing him. The IDF released aerial footage exhibiting the strike and its aftermath.

Noa Argamani, 28, was rescued on June 8, 2024, after 246 days in captivity. During her imprisonment, she endured harsh conditions including witnessing the execution of a fellow captive, near-fatal exposure to an airstrike, enforced starvation, and the distress of being separated from her terminally ill mother, Liora. Avinatan Or, aged 33, who was held separately, was released after 738 days as part of a ceasefire agreement brokered by former U.S. President Donald Trump in October 2025.

The initial Hamas incursion on October 7, 2023, was an unprecedented assault that resulted in over 1,200 deaths, marking the deadliest day for Jewish people since the Holocaust. In addition to the high civilian toll, Hamas militants took 251 hostages during the attack. Israel’s subsequent military response has caused a deepening humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip. According to Hamas-run health authorities in Gaza, more than 73,000 Palestinians have died during the conflict, a figure considered credible by the United Nations.

In a recent development, the Board of Peace established by Trump unveiled a £1.85 billion plan aimed at rebuilding Gaza. However, officials involved in the initiative have cautioned that prospects for a stable ceasefire remain uncertain amid ongoing hostilities and disagreements between Israel and Hamas over the terms of a lasting peace.