US reportedly assisted Israel in rescue of four hostages with intelligence, logistical support

The United States government provided Israel with intelligence regarding the four hostages freed by Israeli forces on Saturday, according to a New York Times report on Saturday.

“A team of American hostage recovery officials stationed in Israel assisted the Israeli military’s effort to rescue the four captives by providing intelligence and other logistical support, one American official said, speaking without attribution to discuss the sensitive operation,” the NYT wrote.

“Intelligence collection and analysis teams from the United States and Britain have been in Israel throughout the war, assisting Israeli intelligence in collecting and analyzing information related to the hostages, some of them citizens of both countries, according to a senior Israeli defense official familiar with the effort to locate and rescue the hostages,” the Times added.

An Israeli official explained that Israeli forces used U.S. and British intelligence to locate the hostages, information they would not have had access to otherwise.

“The Pentagon and the C.I.A. have been providing information collected from drone flights over Gaza, communications intercepts and other sources about the potential location of hostages. While Israel has its own intelligence, the United States and Britain have been able to provide intelligence from the air and cyberspace that Israel cannot collect on its own,” the Israeli official said.

The U.S. government and the United Kingdom were not involved in the planning or execution of the rescue operations, the Israeli official clarified.

Hamas condemned the U.S. following reports that it provided Israeli forces with assistance.

“[The report] proves once again the complicit role of the American administration and its full participation in the war crimes committed in the Gaza Strip,” the Iranian-supported terror organization said, adding a call to “escalate.”

“We call on our Arab and Islamic peoples, and the free people of the world, to exert more pressure and escalate the movement denouncing the aggression and genocide in Gaza.”

The Biden administration did not comment directly on the reports, however, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan alluded to it.

“The United States is supporting all efforts to secure the release of hostages still held by Hamas, including American citizens,” Sullivan said in a statement. “This includes through ongoing negotiations or other means.”

Sullivan praised the rescue operation on Saturday.

“Today, Israeli security forces conducted a successful operation to rescue four hostages from the grips of Hamas in Gaza. All four were taken from the Nova Music Festival on October 7, and Hamas filmed the horrific abduction of Ms. Argamani for the world to see. Now they are safe and reunited with their families. We commend the work of the Israeli security services that conducted this daring operation,” he stated.

U.S. President Joe Biden hailed the rescue of the four hostages during a press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday.

“I want to echo President Macron’s comments welcoming the safe rescue of four hostages that were returned to their families in Israel. We won’t stop working until all the hostages come home and a ceasefire is reached,” he said.