As tensions rise across the Middle East, Israel recovered the body of the last Israeli hostage from Gaza on the eve of International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Israeli forces located police officer Ran Gvili in a Gaza cemetery and returned him to Israel after 843 days, marking the first time since 2014 that no Israeli hostages remain in Gaza. Gvili was on leave because of an injured shoulder on October 7, 2023, but went out to fight and died defending Kibbutz Alumim from the Hamas attack. His body was taken into Gaza.
President Isaac Herzog released a video of himself and his wife removing their yellow pins, the national symbol of the hostages. At his residence, Herzog spoke of the moment, saying, “An entire nation is breathing an enormous sigh of relief tonight, as all of our hearts are with Ran’s family.”
Gvili’s family thanked the Israel Defense Forces, the police, the government, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and the people of Israel for bringing him home. His sister expressed gratitude to President Trump and others involved in the effort.
