After more than 700 days in captivity, the remaining 20 hostages still alive in Gaza have been released, after the Israeli government’s ratification of a ceasefire deal with Hamas.
They were among the 251 people kidnapped during the 7 October attacks on southern Israel, in which Hamas-led militants killed about 1,200 people.
Before the release on Monday, tens of thousands of people gathered at Tel Aviv’s “hostages square”, erupting into loud cheers when it was announced the former captives were in the hands of the Red Cross.
As agreed in the deal, Israel responded by freeing 250 Palestinians serving long terms in Israeli prisons, and 1,700 others detained in Gaza during the war.
A further 26 hostages held are presumed dead and the fate of two is unknown. Hamas has indicated that recovering the bodies of the dead may take longer than releasing those who are alive.
Here are details of those who have returned home.
Matan Angrest, 22
In June, Angrest’s family released video that appeared to show the Israeli army soldier being pulled from a tank by scores of men at the Nahal Oz military base on 7 October 2023.
His family celebrated his return. “We can breathe again. Our Matan is home. Our beloved boy has been returned to us after two complex years, and we are so proud of him,” they said in a statement, adding: “We cannot stop hugging him.”
They described the moment as bittersweet. “The joy in our family is mixed with sadness for those murdered and for those who were not returned alive.”
Gali Berman and Ziv Berman, 28
The twin brothers were taken hostage at Kfar Aza kibbutz, less than two miles from the border with Gaza.
Early on Monday, the Israeli government press office released images of the two brothers on social media, writing: “Gali and Ziv Berman, free and back home.”
Elkana Bohbot, 36
Bohbot was taken captive at the Nova music festival during the raids on 7 October 2023. He had stayed behind to try to help those wounded during the attacks, according to the American Jewish Committee.
On Monday, his wife, Rivka Bohbot, thanked all those who had supported and helped the family. “For two years we waited for this moment – the moment our little family would be whole again,” she said in a statement.
“The man who is home to me has finally come back home to me, and most importantly, to Reem. Our Reem already turned five, and today he will finally truly celebrate the moment of reunion with his father. Reem can finally call out to Dad, and Dad will answer, hug him, and play with him.”
Rom Braslavski, 21
Braslavski was also abducted at the Nova music festival, where he was working as a security guard, according to the World Jewish Congress. His family was later told he had saved a number of people before being kidnapped.
In April, he appeared in a video filmed by his captors in Gaza. The footage, which appeared to show him emaciated and in tears, sparked international condemnation.
Nimrod Cohen, 20
Cohen, a corporal in the Israeli army, was guarding the area near the Nirim kibbutz close to Gaza’s frontier when his unit was overrun by armed militants, his father, Yehuda Cohen, recently told UN News.
On Monday, his mother, Viki Cohen, spoke to Reuters as she was making her way to Reim, an Israeli military camp where the hostages were transferred. “I am so excited. I am full of happiness. It’s hard to imagine how I feel this moment. I didn’t sleep all night.”
Ariel Cunio, 28, and David Cunio, 35
The two brothers were kidnapped from Nir Oz kibbutz. Ariel was taken alongside his girlfriend, Arbel Yehoud, who was released in January, while David was abducted with his wife, Sharon Aloni Cunio, who was released in November 2023 along with their three-year-old twin daughters, Ema and Yuly.
Early on Monday, their mother, Silvia Cunio, said she had had a video call with her sons before Hamas handed them over to the Red Cross. “I did not hear anything, but I saw them and it was enough for me to feel an abnormal amount of happiness,” she told the Jerusalem Post. “It’s impossible to describe everything I’m going through. I’m already waiting to give them the biggest hug and kiss in the world.”
Evyatar David, 24
David was taken at the Nova music festival. In August his family expressed fears that Hamas was starving him after he was seen on video saying he had not eaten for days and had received barely any drinking water.
“Finally, our Evyatar is home,” his family said in a statement on Monday. “From the first moment, we knew he would return, and here, after two years of suffering, he is here. Now a new journey of healing will begin for Evyatar and for us.”
Guy Gilboa-Dalal, 24
Gilboa-Dalal was at the Nova festival, dancing with his brother in a grove of trees just a few miles from Gaza. Soon after, he was kidnapped by Hamas.
“It’s so hard missing him all day every day, thinking about him all day every day,” his brother, Gal Gilboa-Dalal, told the Guardian last week. “And as time goes by it’s getting harder and harder [to bear], and harder and harder to see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
Video published by the Israeli military on Monday showed Gilboa-Dalal and another hostage, Alon Ohel, speaking to soldiers soon after they were released from captivity
Maxim Herkin, 37
Herkin was also at the Nova music festival when he was kidnapped. The Russian-Israeli dual citizen had attended the event by chance after being invited by friends at the last minute, according to the Times of Israel.
Born in the Donbas region of Ukraine, he has a three-year-old daughter and was the primary provider for his mother and 11-year-old brother.
His family issued a statement on Monday. “After two agonising years of uncertainty, anxiety, and hope, Maxim has returned to us … Our Maxim is strong. He endured a difficult period under inhumane conditions and showed us once again how much physical and mental strength he possesses. From now on, he begins a journey of recovery, love, and rehabilitation. We will embrace him, wrap him in our care, and look forward soon to his reunion with his beloved daughter.”
Eitan Horn, 38
Horn was kidnapped along with his brother, Iair, from Iair’s home in Nir Oz kibbutz.
Iair was released in February and told the Times of Israel in July that he had set aside his own recovery to focus on the release of his brother and the other hostages still in Gaza. “My life is frozen right now,” he said. “I live in a nightmare that every day they are kidnapping me anew.”
On Monday, the family said the release of his brother meant Iair “can finally breathe and feel truly free. Our Eitan crossed the border and was returned to Israel after more than two years of hell.”
The family added: “We are waiting for him with hugs and lots of love, and we will accompany him through the entire recovery process. We will stand with him and by his side for as long as needed, and we will tell him how much Israeli society fought for him and for all the hostages. But our hearts are not whole, and our struggle is not over. Eitan has returned, but it is not enough. Only when the last hostage returns can we say we have fulfilled our mission and moral obligation.
Segev Kalfon, 27
Kalfon was abducted as he was trying to leave the Nova festival. Earlier he had been on the phone with his family as the vehicle he was in slowly inched forward, trapped in a traffic jam of people trying to flee the area.
“We were on the phone for an hour with him until 8.10am,” his father, Kobi Kalfon, told the Times of Israel in July. “It was crazy, atomic pressure. I told them just to run.”
A friend told the family that Hamas militants had approached the car and grabbed Segev, who at the time was studying finance at a Tel Aviv university. His family has spoken out about their worries about his health, particularly as he had been diagnosed with a severe form of anxiety and put on medication weeks before the 7 October attacks.
Bar Kupershtein, 23
Kupershtein was kidnapped at the Nova music festival, where he had been working as a bouncer. During the attack he stayed behind to assist the Israeli police and security team and provide first aid to the injured, according to the Jerusalem Post.
His family issued a statement on Monday: “We cannot contain the excitement from the moment we heard the good news. Two years of an impossible journey, two years in which we did everything we could so that everyone would know who Bar is. Now everyone will get to truly know him.”
Omri Miran, 48
Miran was at his home in kibbutz Nahal Oz with his wife, Lishay Lavi, and their daughters, Roni and Alma, when they were woken by sirens. As they took shelter in their safe room, word came that Hamas had begun to enter some of the homes.
The militants forced one of their teenage neighbours to bang on the door of their safe room and it was made clear to them that the teenager and the family would be shot if they did not open up. The family did so and eventually Miran was tied up and led away, his wife told the Guardian.
On Monday, the family celebrated Miran’s return. “After more than 700 long, painful, and agonising days, Omri will finally receive from [his children] Roni and Alma a healing embrace. We want to thank the people of Israel from the bottom of our hearts for standing by us in the darkest hours and on days when this moment seemed like a distant and impossible wish. This moment, today, is not a personal victory but a victory of an entire people.
“We also want to express our deep gratitude to the security forces and the heroic [Israel Defense Forces] soldiers. We are at the beginning of a complex and challenging, yet moving, journey of recovery.
“We remain committed to the struggle until the last hostage returns, and until the complete recovery of our beloved country. May Omri’s return mark the beginning of this recovery and the unity of our people.”
Eitan Mor, 25
Mor was working as a security guard at the Nova music festival. A survivor later said he had spotted Mor and a friend bringing others to safety before he was kidnapped, according to the Times of Israel.
On Monday, his parents posed a photo showing them hugging their son on social media. “In praise and thanksgiving to God, we are happy to announce that our Eitan is home!” they wrote.
“Our beloved Eitan, how much we have waited for you, how much we have waited to finally see you after two years. We saw you for the last time today, on [the final day of the Sukkot holiday] two years ago, and today we embrace you back into the family.”
Yosef-Haim Ohana, 25
In February the family of Ohana said, without providing further details, that they had received a “clear” sign that he was alive, after being taken hostage at the Nova music festival.
At the time of his capture, he and a friend had been attempting to provide aid to injured partygoers, according to the Times of Israel, while the Jerusalem Post said he had gone to the festival with friends to celebrate his imminent departure to the US to take a pilot course.
On Monday his father, Avi Ohana, said in a statement: “We are filled with happiness for the privilege that has fallen to us to embrace Yosef-Chaim again. Our hearts are with the families who have not yet had the chance to receive their loved ones, and we wish for the swift return to the land of Israel of all our deceased hostages for proper burial.”
Alon Ohel, 24
Ohel was kidnapped at the Nova festival. In August, his mother wrote a piece for the Observer pleading for leaders around the world to do more to end the war and bring the hostages home.
“My son and the other hostages, most of them young men, still have their whole lives ahead of them. I know that my son will play the piano again, filling the air with everything from Beethoven to Elton John to his own songs,” wrote Idit Ohel.
“I know my son will begin his studies at the music school where he was accepted, that he will surf again, cook again and do all the other things that brought a smile to his face,” she added.
Avinatan Or, 32
Or was kidnapped at gunpoint along with his girlfriend, Noa Argamani, at the Nova music festival. Argamani was rescued by Israeli special forces after 245 days in captivity.
Speaking this week, Argamani said: “Avinatan is someone words can’t describe.” She told the news website Ynet Global: “There’s this quiet strength in him that radiates peace. One of the sayings he loved was: ‘A lion doesn’t have to roar to let the other animals know he’s king.’ That’s exactly who he is – always present, even when silent.”
Matan Zangauker, 25
Zanguaker was abducted with his partner, Ilana Gritzewsky, from their home in Nir Oz kibbutz. Gritzewsky was released in November 2023.
On Monday, his family said Zangauker had returned home to his partner, Ilana, his sisters Natalie and Shani, and his mother, Einav. “After two years of hell, today we begin a new chapter in our lives – one of healing and rehabilitation for Matan and for our family. Matan has been gone for two years, and there is a long road ahead for him and for us,” the family said in a statement.
“To our incredible nation – for more than 700 days, you have surrounded us with love and stood by our side in the fight for our loved ones. Millions of people left their homes and joined our struggle so that strangers they never met could return home and reunite with their families.”
• This article was amended on 13 October 2025. An earlier version referred to Noa Argamani as having been “released” last year; she was freed by Israeli forces (in a rescue raid in June 2024).
