They were abducted from the Nova music festival on 7 October and have been returned to Israel.

The Israeli military has estimated that fewer than 100 people died in the operation, whilst the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said 274 people were killed.

According to Al Jazeera, the military’s attacks, one of the worst since October, by air, land and sea on Saturday hit Nuseirat and Deir el-Balah in central Gaza, with doctors describing the scenes inside Al-Aqsa Hospital as a “complete bloodbath”.

One man, Abdel Salam Darwish, told the BBC he was in a market buying vegetables when he heard fighter jets from above and the sound of gunfire. He said:

Afterwards, people’s bodies were in pieces, scattered in the streets, and blood stained the walls.

The return of the hostages to their families is being celebrated in Israel and world leaders, including US President Joe Biden, have welcomed the news of their release.

However, there has been mounting criticism of the deadly cost of the operation inside Gaza.

Writing on X, European Union foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said he condemned it “in the strongest terms”.

In response, an Israeli minister said that instead of condemning Hamas for hiding behind civilians, the EU had condemned Israel for saving its citizens.

Pictures from the Nuseirat refugee camp area show intense bombardment and people mourning the dead.

The Hamas-run health ministry released the names of 86 people out of the 274 Palestinians it says were killed during the two-hour operation.

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said special forces operated “under heavy fire” when rescuing the hostages.

He said that one special forces officer was wounded and later died in hospital.

One man, who said more than 40 members of his family have been killed since the conflict began in October, said he was in a house that was hit by a strike. He said:

As soon as these children and women entered the house, the bombing attack took place, claiming the lives of all those inside it.

This home, which used to house approximately 30 people who then became 50, was bombed… only me, my father, my wife, and a young man survived… we are the only survivors out of 50 people.

Some Palestinians have criticised Hamas for the bloodshed. Speaking to BBC, Hassan Omar, 37, said he lamented the unnecessary loss of lives in Israeli strikes. He said:

For each Israeli hostage they could have freed 80 Palestinian prisoners and without any bloodshed – [that] is a million times better than losing 100 dead.

My message to Hamas is stopping the loss is part of the gain, we should get rid of those who control us from Qatar hotels.

During its 7 October attacks in southern Israel, Hamas killed about 1,200 people and took some 251 people hostage.

About 116 remain in the Palestinian territory, including 41 the army says are dead.

A deal agreed in November saw Hamas release 105 hostages in return for a week-long ceasefire and some 240 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

On Saturday, the Hamas-run health ministry said the death toll in Gaza is now above 37,000 people.

More: Pindula News