JERUSALEM/GAZA/AMMAN/TEHRAN /ISTANBUL - Israeli forces on Saturday rescued four hostages from the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, where, according to Palestinian sources, a bloody Israeli assault took place, killing at least 210 people and wounding more than 400 others.

Khalil Al-Dakran, director of al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza, told Xinhua that many wounded Palestinians were sent to the hospital, with some of them later confirmed dead.

In a statement on Saturday, Hamas armed wing Al-Qassam Brigades denounced the Israeli assault in the Nuseirat area as "a complex war crime."

The rescued hostages were identified as Noa Argamani, 25, Shlomi Ziv, 40, Almog Meir Jan, 21, and Andrey Kozlov, 27, all of whom were abducted last October by Hamas while attending the Nova festival, an outdoor music event, in a rural area near the Gaza-Israel fence

Ismail Haniyeh, head of the Hamas political bureau, also condemned the deadly Israeli strike, stressing that the Palestinian people "will not surrender, and the resistance will continue to defend their rights."

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The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said this hostage rescue operation had been planned for weeks and was jointly carried out by the army with the police's elite unit and the intelligence body Shin Bet, noting that a police officer was killed during the operation.

The rescued hostages were identified as Noa Argamani, 25, Shlomi Ziv, 40, Almog Meir Jan, 21, and Andrey Kozlov, 27, all of whom were abducted last October by Hamas while attending the Nova festival, an outdoor music event, in a rural area near the Gaza-Israel fence.

IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said the four were located in two buildings at the heart of the Nuseirat camp.

In videos released by the government, Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with Argamani over the phone.

Following the rescue of the four, 120 Israeli hostages remain held in Gaza, including 43 feared dead, according to the Israeli army. "We will do everything to get them back," Hagari vowed.

Jordan's Foreign Ministry condemned the Israeli attacks targeting the Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip.

The attacks reflect Israel's systematic targeting of Palestinian civilians and its persistence in violating international law and international humanitarian law, as well as its continued perpetration of "war crimes," the ministry said in a statement.

Sufian Qudah, spokesperson of the ministry, stressed the kingdom's "condemnation and absolute denunciation" of Israel's attacks in Gaza, calling on the international community to take immediate and urgent action to stop Israel's "war crimes" and to oblige it to comply with international law and international humanitarian law.

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Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani also strongly condemned the deadly Israeli airstrikes, denouncing Israel's killing of hundreds of Palestinian civilians during the attacks as a "horrendous and shocking crime."

The "crime" perpetrated by Israel was a consequence of the "inaction" of governments and relevant international organizations in the face of eight months of "war crimes and violations of all international laws and regulations as well as international humanitarian law" by Israel in Gaza, said the spokesman.

He blamed the United States and certain European countries for providing arms to Israel and backing it in its offensive.

In the wake of the operation, Israel's wartime cabinet minister, Benny Gantz, postponed his expected resignation announcement planned for Saturday evening.

On May 18, Gantz threatened to resign from Netanyahu's government on June 8 if the cabinet did not formulate an action plan to secure Gaza war goals, including the return of hostages and the elimination of Hamas.

In a statement on Saturday evening, Netanyahu urged Gantz not to step down, stressing, "We must remain united in the face of the great tasks ahead of us."

Israel's state-owned Kan TV news reported that the Israeli wartime cabinet approved a pilot plan presented by Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to replace the rule of Hamas in Gaza

Gantz replied in a video, saying, "The challenges Israel faces remain as they were, and therefore, I say to the prime minister and the entire leadership, even today, we must look responsibly at how it is right and possible to continue from here."

Meanwhile, on Saturday night, tens of thousands of people demonstrated in Israel's Tel Aviv for the release of the remaining hostages and against the government.

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The police declared the demonstration illegal and announced the arrest of 10 protestors on suspicion of violating public order, according to a police statement.

Earlier in the day, Israel's state-owned Kan TV news reported that the Israeli wartime cabinet approved a pilot plan presented by Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to replace the rule of Hamas in Gaza.

According to the plan, the Israeli army will "protect" several areas in northern Gaza and allow the presence of local leadership and the entry of humanitarian aid trucks.

Also on Saturday, the extraordinary meeting of foreign ministers of Developing 8 (D-8) countries held in Türkiye's Istanbul called for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

"We demand an immediate, permanent, and unconditional ceasefire in Gaza and a halt to Israel's attacks on the Palestinian people," the ministers stated in a declaration after the meeting, Türkiye's state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

The declaration noted that D-8 member states would offer unwavering support for Palestine's pursuit of full membership in the United Nations (UN) and its struggle for self-determination.

The Palestinian death toll from the ongoing Israeli attacks in the enclave has risen to 36,801, with 83,680 people injured, as updated by the health authorities in Gaza on Saturday

At a press conference after the meeting, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said D-8 countries will not remain silent in the face of Israeli atrocities in Gaza.

"We will work with all our strength to end the Israeli occupation and achieve the two-state solution," Fidan added.

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Advocating for the acceptance of Palestine's UN membership, the minister stressed that "Palestine's full membership in the UN is hindered by the US veto. As D-8 countries, we demand an immediate end to this injustice."

D-8, established in 1997, is an organization for development cooperation among Bangladesh, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Egypt, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Türkiye.

The deadly conflict between Israel and Gaza-ruling Hamas has raged for eight months since its start on Oct 7, 2023. It erupted as Israel launched a large offensive in Gaza after Hamas militants stormed southern Israel from Gaza in a surprise attack, killing around 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages back to the Palestinian enclave.

The Palestinian death toll from the ongoing Israeli attacks in the enclave has risen to 36,801, with 83,680 people injured, as updated by the health authorities in Gaza on Saturday.