Ran Gvili found: All Israeli hostages have returned home from Hamas captivity in Gaza after 842 days

The body of Master Sgt. Ran Gvili, the last remaining Israeli hostage in Gaza, was found earlier today by Israeli soldiers during Operation Brave Heart in Gaza City, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced on Monday afternoon.

“I am happy to announce to the citizens, the people of Israel: I informed the Gvili family that our forces found Rani, and he is currently on his way back. We promised to bring everyone back, and we have brought back every last one of them. Rani, a hero of Israel, went in and was the last to return. He returned home,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated.

The return of Gvili marks the first time in 4,208 days since the 2014 Gaza War that no Israeli citizens are being held hostage in Gaza.

Only three years earlier, IDF soldier Gilad Shalit had been released after spending five years in captivity, meaning that since 2006, there has only been a three-year period without any Israeli hostages being held in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas Spokesman Hazem Qassem: “The discovery of the body of the last Israeli hostage in Gaza confirms Hamas's commitment to all the requirements of the ceasefire agreement. We call on the mediators and the U.S. to pressure Israel to cease its violations of the agreement and… https://t.co/hUmsVkmcYx pic.twitter.com/S1JdKpAkBH

— Ariel Oseran أريئل أوسيران (@ariel_oseran) January 26, 2026

"The entire people of Israel are moved to tears. Our hearts are with his parents, Talik and Itzik, who fought a noble and heroic battle to bring him home," stated President Isaac Herzog, publishing a video showing him removing the yellow hostage pin from his lapel.

"Thank you to all those involved in the operation to bring Ran home. This was an operation of immeasurable importance in fulfilling the sacred obligation to redeem captives. After many difficult years, for the first time since 2014, there are no Israeli citizens held hostage in Gaza. An entire nation prayed and waited for this moment," Herzog said.

Gvili is the last of 251 Israelis, soldiers as well as civilians, who returned dead or alive after being kidnapped during Hamas’ invasion and massacre in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

The IDF announced that Gvili’s body was identified during a large-scale operation in northern Gaza, and that his family was informed “following the completion of the identification process by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, in cooperation with the Israel Police and the Military Rabbinate.”

After rushing to the border on the morning of Oct. 7 to help defend the country, the police officer was killed in combat and Hamas terrorists abducted his body to the Gaza Strip.

After 842 days, the October 7 Hostage Crisis is finally over. And how fittingly, it ended with the Hamas kidnappers betraying the terms of the ransom—and Israel going into Gaza to find the last hostage’s body itself.

Ran Gvili is home.

It’s over. pic.twitter.com/qvCxcqVkZR

— Eylon Levy (@EylonALevy) January 26, 2026

The IDF also published footage of Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir calling Gvili’s family. “We are all very moved, embracing you, and thanking all the IDF soldiers who took part in this mission. I am very glad that we are bringing you this news, which brings a great deal of relief,” Zamir said.

Gvili’s mother Talik replied, “Absolutely a relief, after these two and a half years – even though we hoped for a different ending.”

“Please pass on to all the teams who worked there – they are world champions,” Talik Gvili added.

“We have completed the mission of returning all the hostages, both the living and the fallen, and upheld the very meaningful IDF value that no one is left behind,” Zamir added.

Gvili’s mother later wrote on Instagram, “The first to go, the last to return. Our hero.”

IDF soldiers singing after the recovery of Ran Gvili.

The song they are singing is Ani Ma’amin (“I Believe”):

“I believe with complete faith in the coming of the Messiah.
Even though he may tarry, nonetheless I will wait for him.”

It has been over 800 days. Our faith may have… pic.twitter.com/bc9R7047ra

— Amit Segal (@AmitSegal) January 26, 2026

According to Army Radio, Gvili’s body was found in a Muslim cemetery in the Gaza neighborhood of Shejaiya, shortly after noon, after some 250 bodies had been examined over a period of around 48 hours.

IDF troops will now restore the cemetery, return the other bodies to burial and withdraw from the area, which lies right along the Yellow Line.

“I wish to extend my heartfelt condolences to his courageous parents, Talik and Itzik, and to his family, and to thank our heroic fighters for their exceptional determination and commitment to returning all our hostages and protecting our citizens,” Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement.

“Master Sgt. Ran Guaily has been brought home. On the morning of October 7, as the murderous terrorist attack began, Ran rushed to the Gaza envelope, bravely joined the fighting at Kibbutz Alumim, fought with extraordinary courage, eliminated many terrorists, and shielded civilians with his own body – until he fell in battle and was abducted to the Gaza Strip.”

“The return of Ran, of blessed memory, for burial is a painful moment of closure – with the return of the last hostage from the Gaza Strip to Israeli soil. It is a moment that underscores the State of Israel’s commitment to its soldiers and its citizens: to bring every single one home – as we promised the families and the Israeli public. That is our mutual responsibility,” Katz said.

“May Rani’s memory be a blessing.”