Kidnapping of Noa Argamani

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Noa Argamani
נועה ארגמני
Screenshot of video showing Noa's abduction
Born (1997-10-12) 12 October 1997 (age 26)
NationalityIsraeli
Known forAbduction at the Re'im music festival massacre

On 7 October 2023, 25-year-old Israeli woman Noa Argamani (Hebrew: נועה ארגמני) was abducted by Hamas during the Re'im music festival massacre, part of the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel. In one of the first Hamas videos released of the massacre, she was seen being abducted by motorcycle as she yells, "Don't kill me!" Her arms are outstretched toward her boyfriend Avinatan Or, who was also being kidnapped.[1][2][3][4] The footage of her kidnapping, became a symbol of the hostage crisis and has led to Argamani being described as "the face of the Nova music festival hostages". Despite other hostages being released during a ceasefire in November 2023, Argamani remained captive.[5]

On 15 January 2024, Hamas released a video featuring Argamani speaking in captivity.

Noa Argamani

Noa Argamani was born in Israel on 12 October 1997 to Yaakov and Liora Argamani.[6] She is their only child.[7] Her mother Liora Argamani, also known as Li Chunhong in Chinese, is from the Chinese city of Wuhan and is a former national of China.[8] Noa Argamani is a native Israeli; after her abduction it was incorrectly reported that she is a Chinese-Israeli born in Beijing.[8] She is a student at Ben Gurion University.[9]

Kidnapping

For broader coverage of this topic, see Re'im music festival massacre and 2023 Israel–Hamas war hostage crisis.
External videos
YouTube logo
Video of Noa's abduction
video icon Woman kidnapped by Hamas fighters in front of helpless boyfriend at Israeli festival

On 7 October 2023, as part of the initial incursion of the 2023 Israel-Hamas war, Hamas militants crossed from the Gaza Strip into Israel and attacked the Supernova Sukkot Gathering music festival, an open-air music festival in the western Negev desert.[10] Argamani was attending the festival with her boyfriend Avinatan Or and was shown in a now viral video along with Or being captured by Hamas militants.[2] The Israeli government "condemned the video as psychological warfare propaganda."[11] Her friend Amit Parparia indicated that they did not want to believe the video depicted Argamani and Or, but could not deny it as "Its just her face, her clothes and it's her boyfriend."[1]

In the video, Argamani can be heard screaming "Don't kill me! No, no, no!" while being forced onto a motorcycle by members of Hamas.[12][13] The video also shows Or being restrained by two other men.[12][13] Or's brother, Moshe, reportedly learned of the video by emergency teams and viewed it before giving his approval for the media to be publish it.[12][13] Argamani has been seen in a later footage that appears to show her drinking water in a room in Gaza.[12][13]

Allegations were raised during an NBC report that Argamani was not abducted by Hamas forces but instead by a supposed mob of Palestinians from Gaza. This theory was posited by anonymous supposed Israeli military officials who stated their reasoning being those filmed abducting Argamani wore no official uniforms and she appeared to have been abducted several hours after the attack.[14]

Media coverage and efforts to release

Noa Argamani at the exhibition of the abductees at the National Library of Israel

Argamani's abduction was featured on the front-page of the 8 October edition of the UK's Mail on Sunday.[7]

News of Argamani's abduction and her ties to China have been widely reported by international and Chinese media.[8] Her mother Liora has appealed to the Chinese embassy for help in freeing her daughter.[8] Argamani's father Yaakov reportedly indicated that he did not approve of violence to get his daughter freed, saying: "They also have mothers who are crying. The same as it is for us."[1]

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appealed to Chinese Ambassador Cai Run for Chinese President Xi Jinping to intervene to secure the release of Argamani.[15]

On January 14, 2024, Hamas released a video of Argamani and two other hostages.[16] It showed Argamani and two male hostages introducing themselves and asking for Israel to bring them home.[17] Hamas had indicated it would give more information about the hostages' fate the following day.[17] The next day, Hamas released a video which showed Argamani saying that the two male hostages had been killed in Israeli airstrikes.[18]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c O'Kane, Caitlin (10 October 2023). ""Her name is Noa": Video shows woman being taken by Hamas at Supernova music festival where at least 260 were killed - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Festivalgoers, children, soldiers: What we know about the people captured by Hamas". CNN. 8 October 2023. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
  3. ^ Lajka, Arijeta; Mellen, Riley (8 October 2023). "Video captures concertgoer being kidnapped by militants". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
  4. ^ Cohen, Rebecca. "Noa Argamani's friend says no one can escape videos and firsthand accounts of the Hamas attacks". Business Insider. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
  5. ^ Sanchez, Raf; Da Silva, Chantal; Pinson, Shira (19 December 2023). "Noa Argamani: The Face of the Nova Music Festival Hostages". NBC News. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  6. ^ Stevenson, Alexandra (12 October 2023). "'We Are Waiting': Family of an Israeli Hostage Marks Her Birthday". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  7. ^ a b Merlin-Rosenzweig, Orit (11 October 2023). "Noa Argamani's parents sought help from the Chinese embassy". Ynetnews. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
  8. ^ a b c d Zhuang, Sylvie (12 October 2023). "Israel-Hamas war: mother of kidnapped woman says daughter is Israeli, not Chinese". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 4 November 2023. Reproduced in "Israel-Hamas war: mother of kidnapped woman says daughter is Israeli, not Chinese". Yahoo Finance. 12 October 2023.
  9. ^ ToI Staff. "Taken captive: Noa Argamani, 26, recorded in one of first Hamas videos". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  10. ^ "Israeli music festival: 260 bodies recovered from site where people fled in hail of bullets". BBC News. 8 October 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  11. ^ "Dying Mother Pleas for Release of Hamas-Held Daughter". VOA News News.
  12. ^ a b c d Davis, Alys (8 October 2023). "What we know about Israeli hostages taken by Hamas". BBC News. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  13. ^ a b c d Fitzgerald, Madeline (8 October 2023). "Family of Terrified Couple Kidnapped By Hamas Releases Video Showing Moment They Were Taken: 'Don't Kill Me!'". The Messenger. Archived from the original on 10 November 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  14. ^ "Noa Argamani was abducted not by Hamas but by civilian mob, NBC report suggests". The Times of Israel. 19 December 2023. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  15. ^ Lazaroff, Tovah (25 December 2023). "Netanyahu asks China to help free Hamas hostage Noa Argamani". The Jerusalem Post.
  16. ^ Ynet (14 January 2024). "Sign of life from three Israeli hostages in fresh Hamas propaganda clip". Ynetnews. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  17. ^ a b "Three Gaza hostages, including Noa Argamani, show sign of life in video". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 14 January 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  18. ^ "Hostages Yossi Sharabi and Itai Svirsky reported dead in Hamas video". 15 January 2024.
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