The remains of the final hostage have been returned, concluding the saga of the 251 people abducted by Hamas on October 7, 2023.
PARIS: The remains of Ran Gvili have been returned, marking the end of the hostage crisis that began with Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
None of the 251 people abducted that day now remain in the Gaza Strip.
Of the total captives, 207 were taken alive by militants during the unprecedented assault.
From that group, 166 hostages survived their captivity while 41 died while being held.
Three of those who died in captivity were mistakenly killed by the Israeli army in December 2023.
A further 44 hostages were killed during the initial attack and their bodies taken to Gaza.
The majority of the hostages, 216, were Israeli citizens.
Approximately 100 of the Israeli hostages held dual or triple nationality.
Other captives included two agricultural students from Nepal and Tanzania and 31 Thai farmworkers.
A Filipino caregiver and a French-Mexican national were also among those abducted.
Releases and repatriations occurred primarily during two truces in 2023 and 2025.
They also followed the start of the current ceasefire on October 10.
Hamas released five living hostages outside of formal truce periods.
Eight individuals and 50 bodies were repatriated during Israeli military operations.
Most hostages were civilians abducted from kibbutzim near the Gaza border.
Seventy-six were taken from Kibbutz Nir Oz and 34 from Kibbutz Beeri.
Forty-three hostages were seized while fleeing the Nova music festival.
The group included 25 soldiers, many young adults serving at bases near Gaza.
Eleven of those soldiers were already dead when taken.
The youngest hostage was eight-and-a-half-month-old Kfir Bibas.
He was abducted with his mother and four-year-old brother Ariel.
All 36 minors taken hostage were returned alive except for the Bibas brothers.
The brothers were repatriated in coffins in February 2025.
Of the adult hostages, 71 were women and 144 were men.
The four oldest hostages were 85 years old at the time of abduction.
Two of the octogenarians were returned alive and two died in captivity.
