Israel to hold funeral for last hostage recovered from Gaza

Israel prepares to bury Ran Gvili, the last hostage recovered from Gaza, marking a significant moment of national healing.

The remains of the last Israeli captive recovered from the Gaza Strip were ‍set to be buried on Wednesday (January 28, 2026) in a funeral that ​will help Israel turn the page after one ‌of the most tramautising periods in its history.

Ran ​Gvili, an off-duty police officer, was killed fighting militants during the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on southern Israel. He was then seized and taken back into Gaza by the Islamic Jihad militant group, Israeli officials say.

Gvili was among about 250 people abducted during ​the attack, which killed around 1,200 people, according ⁠to Israeli tallies, and set off the war in Gaza in which Palestinians health authorities say Israel kill more than 71,000 Palestinians.

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Many of ​the hostages were ⁠released during two short ceasefires, but dozens died in captivity. Under the terms of an October deal brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump, Hamas and other groups agreed ‌to return the remaining hostages, alive or dead, ‌in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners.

Gvili, who was the last to be ‍released, will be buried in his hometown of Meitar in southern Israel. His casket will be driven there in ‍a procession beginning in Camp Shura, a facility where Israel has identified victims of the October 2023 attack.