The Israeli military has rescued a 52-year-old man who'd been held hostage by Hamas in Gaza since last October. Khair Ha'Fhayan Al-Qadi, an Arab Israeli, had been working as a guard at a warehouse when he was abducted. He's now recovering in hospital and has been reunited with his family. Here's our Middle East correspondent, Lucy Williamson.

Surrounded again by sunlight, by the sound of Hebrew, Faha Al-Qadi, a 52-year-old Bedouin Israeli, snatching a second chance at life. Crouched on the floor of a military helicopter after 326 days in captivity, a smile. The start of his journey back home. At Israel's Soroka Hospital, his last few moments in hiding. A wall of Israeli soldiers shielding him from the world he left 10 months ago. From a tunnel in Gaza to an Israeli ambulance in a couple of hours. His family racing the last few meters to greet him. Thin and pale, but staff said in a good and stable condition.

It's difficult to explain how it feels. It's better than having a newborn. We thank God and we thank everyone and hope to see him healthy. We're very happy, very happy.

. Israel's Prime Minister called to welcome him home, keen to be part of his release.

We cannot go into many details of this special operation, but I can share that Israeli commandos rescued Qaid Farhan Al Qadi from an underground tunnel, following accurate intelligence.

The army has described this as a complex operation based on precise intelligence. But there are persistent reports here of a more nuanced story, even that Farhan Al Qadi may have escaped his captives himself. Tonight, a senior military official confirmed that troops had found him in a tunnel alone.

Last week, Israel brought back the bodies of six other hostages. The funeral of one, Chaim Peri, was held in Israel today. The joy of one family and the grief of another. A trickle of hostages returning as more more than a hundred others and a ceasefire deal remained stubbornly out of reach. Lucy Williamson, BBC News, Soroka Hospital, Southern Israel.