Who are the released hostages?

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) stated on August 27th that they had rescued 52-year-old Kaid Farhan Elkadi in a "complex operation in southern Gaza." Mr. Elkadi, a father of 11 and grandfather of one, from a Bedouin village in the Negev Desert, was working as a security guard at Kibbutz Magen when he was abducted.

On June 8th, the IDF rescued 26-year-old Noa Argamani, 22-year-old Almog Meir Jan, 27-year-old Andrey Kozlov, and 41-year-old Shlomi Ziv in a raid in central Gaza. The IDF said they were extracted from two different buildings in the Nuseirat area in a "high-risk, complex mission." Concurrently, Israeli strikes in the same area resulted in the deaths of numerous Palestinians.

60-year-old Fernando Marman and 70-year-old Luis Har were rescued in fighting in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. They were kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak along with three other family members who were all released in November 2023: 17-year-old Mia Leimberg, her mother, 59-year-old Gabriela, and Mia’s aunt, 63-year-old Clara Marman.

40-year-old lawyer Amit Soussana was resting at home with a fever when Hamas attacked Kibbutz Kfar Aza. Her family told The Times of Israel that she had messaged saying she could hear gunfire and was going to hide in her safe room. 21-year-old Mia Shem holds dual French and Israeli citizenship. She appeared in the first hostage video released by Hamas, stating she was kidnapped from the Supernova music festival.

16-year-old Aisha Ziyadne and her 18-year-old brother Bilal have been released, but their brother Hamza and their father remain in captivity. 41-year-old nurse Nili Margalit was abducted from her home in Kibbutz Nir Oz. 29-year-old Shani Goren was also taken from Nir Oz and later seen by her family in a video released by Hamas. She is the granddaughter of a Uruguayan national and was granted citizenship after being kidnapped. Local Uruguayan media said they had been working for her release.

30-year-old Ilana Gritzewsky was kidnapped from Nir Oz along with her Israeli partner Matan Zanguaker. Ilana's father said she came to Israel from Mexico 14 years ago. Matan remains a hostage. 54-year-old Raya Rotem was released on Wednesday, November 29th, days after her daughter, 13-year-old Hila Rotem Shoshani, was freed. They were kidnapped from Kibbutz Be’eri. 18-year-old Itay Regev and his sister, 21-year-old Maya Regev, have now both been released. They were taken from the Supernova music festival. Previously, the family saw Itay in a Hamas video sitting in the back of a car in handcuffs.

16-year-old Amit Shani was the only family member taken when Hamas gunmen broke into his family's safe room at Kibbutz Be’eri. Also taken from Be’eri was 18-year-old Ofir Engel, who has dual Israeli and Dutch citizenship, and was visiting his girlfriend Yuval at the time. He was kidnapped along with Yuval's father, 51-year-old Yossi Sharabi, and her uncle, 55-year-old Eli Sharabi, when Hamas arrived. They remain in captivity. Eli’s wife and two daughters were killed in the attack. 13-year-old Gali Tarshansky was also kidnapped from Be’eri. Her brother, Lior, was killed in the attack.

36-year-old German-Israeli citizen Yarden Roman-Gat was reunited with her husband and young child after being kidnapped from Be’eri. Her husband, Alon, and three-year-old Gefen managed to escape, but Yarden became separated from them. 57-year-old Raz Ben-Ami and 40-year-old Moran Stella Yanai were confirmed to have been released on November 29th. 49-year-old Liat Atzili, a dual US and Israeli citizen, was also released. 29-year-old Sapir Cohen was kidnapped along with her partner Alexander (Sasha) Trufanov, who remains in Hamas captivity. She was released a day after his mother and grandmother, 50-year-old Lena Trufanov and 73-year-old Irena Tati, were freed. Both older women hold dual Russian and Israeli citizenship, and Hamas said their release was a “tribute” to Russian President Vladimir Putin and not part of a deal with Israel. Putin refused to condemn the group after the October 7th attacks.

Hamas released another Russian-Israeli on the same grounds. 25-year-old Roni Krivoi was kidnapped while working as a sound engineer at the Supernova music festival. 34-year-old Sharon Aloni Cunio and her three-year-old twin daughters, Emma and Yuli, have been released, but Sharon's husband and the two girls' father, David Cunio, remains in Gaza. The four were kidnapped from Nir Oz along with Sharon’s sister, Danielle Aloni, and her six-year-old daughter, Emilia. Both have now been released. 16-year-old Or Yaakov and his brother Yagil, who turned 13 in captivity, have been released, but their father, 59-year-old Yair Yaakov, remains a hostage. Yair's partner, 53-year-old Merav Tal, was also released.

36-year-old Rimon Buchshtab Kirsht and her husband, Yagev, were kidnapped together. She has now been released, but he remains a hostage. 16-year-old Sahar Calderon and her 12-year-old brother Erez were released after being taken from Nir Oz by Hamas. 52-year-old Karina Engel-Bart and her two daughters, 18-year-old Mika Engel and 11-year-old Yuval Engel, have been released. 12-year-old Eitan Yahalomi has been released. His father, Ohad, who was shot trying to defend their home, is believed to be a hostage. 9-year-old Emily Hand was released after being held in Gaza without any family members. The Irish-Israeli girl turned nine in captivity, she went missing from Be’eri. Her father, Tom Hand, was initially told Emily had died, and made a statement to the BBC after her release.

“After 50 challenging and complex days, we can’t put our emotions into words,” he said, adding that while the family was “delighted to hold Emily again,” they had not forgotten others still held captive. 34-year-old Doron Katz Asher and her two daughters, Raz, four, and Aviv, two, were captured at her relatives' home near the Gaza border. Doron’s husband, Yoni, saw a video of his wife and daughters being loaded onto a truck with other hostages. “I am determined to resurrect my family from the trauma and terrible bereavement we experienced,” Mr. Asher told the BBC after their release. “I am not celebrating, I will not celebrate, until the last abductee returns,” he said. “The families of the abductees are not posters, they are not slogans, they are real people, and the families of the abductees are my new family from today, and I will make sure and do everything to get the last abductee home.”

Israeli-American Abigail Idan was only three years old when she was kidnapped from her home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza. Her parents were killed in the attack, but she survived and walked to the home of her neighbors, the Broduch family. She was then kidnapped along with 40-year-old Hagar Broduch and her children, Oria, 4, Yuval, 8, and Ofri, 10. All four have now been released. Her father-in-law, Shmuel Broduch, told Israel’s Channel 13 news: “I felt relief when I heard they were in the hands of the Red Cross.” 9-year-old Ohad Munder-Zichri, his mother, 54-year-old Keren Munder, and his grandmother, 78-year-old Ruti Munder, were kidnapped from Nir Oz. Ohad’s ninth birthday was spent in Gaza. Another family member, Avraham Munder, remains in captivity.

Avraham’s nephew, Itay Regev, told BBC Newsnight that the release of some of his family was “a step towards happiness,” but that “the reality we are in is still very, very terrible.” 17-year-old Noam Or and his sister, 13-year-old Alma, were released on November 25th. Their brother, 18-year-old Liam Or, was released days later. They were taken from their home in Be’eri along with their father, 48-year-old Dror Or, who remains a hostage. The body of Dror’s wife and the children’s mother, 50-year-old Yonat, was identified among the 120 people killed in the kibbutz. Noam and Alma’s uncle, Ahar Besorai, told the BBC that the siblings were unaware their mother had died. “We had to break the sad news to them,” he said.

15-year-old Dafna and 8-year-old Ella Eliakim, sisters, were taken from their home in Nir Oz on the day of the attack as part of a family group, and their capture was live-streamed by the attackers. The girls’ mother, Maya Zin, said in a statement that she was overjoyed her daughters were back, adding that since their abduction she had been living “between despair and hope, pain and optimism.” 48-year-old Chen Almog-Goldstein and her children, Tal, 8, Gal, 11, and Agam, 17, were kidnapped from their home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza on the day of the attack. Chen’s husband, Nadav, and their 20-year-old daughter, Yam, were killed by Hamas.

78-year-old Tamar Metzger has been released, but her husband, Yoram, who has diabetes and broke his hip six months ago, remains in captivity. 84-year-old Ditza Heiman is one of the founders of Kibbutz Nir Oz and a former social worker. She is the widow of Zvi Shdaima, who was organizedly rescued from Nazi-controlled areas to the UK during World War II through the “Kindertransport.” 77-year-old Ofelia Adit Roitman is a former school principal who was taken from Kibbutz Nir Oz by Hamas. Aida Sagi, who turned 75 in captivity, was kidnapped from her home in Kibbutz Nir Oz. 60-year-old Noralin “Natalie” Babadiila (Noralin Agokho in some reports) was visiting Kibbutz Nirim to celebrate the community's 70th anniversary when she was kidnapped by Hamas. Her partner, Gideon, was killed on that day.

77-year-old Hanna Katzir was kidnapped from Nir Oz along with her son, 47-year-old Elad Katzir. She appeared in a Hamas-released hostage video on November 9th. 79-year-old Hanna Peri was kidnapped along with her son, 51-year-old Nadav Popplewell. Hanna emigrated to Israel from South Africa in the 1960s and has three children. 67-year-old Dr. Shoshan Haran was kidnapped from her home in Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7th. She is the founder of a non-profit that works to help those in poverty and has a doctorate in agronomy. She was released along with her daughter, 38-year-old Adi Shoham, and her children, Nave, 8, and Yahel, 3. Dr. Haran’s husband, Avshalom, an economist with dual German and Israeli citizenship, was killed in the Hamas attacks, while Adi’s husband, 38-year-old Tal, remains in captivity. Also released were 52-year-old drama therapist Sharon Avigdori and her daughter, Noam, 12, who are relatives of Dr. Haran and were kidnapped from Be’eri at the same time. According to family, family members, 65-year-old Eviatar Kipnis and his wife, 60-year-old Lilach Kipnis, were killed in the attack.

85-year-old Yafa Adar was kidnapped from Nir Oz. A group speaking for the family said she has three children, eight grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. According to The Times of Israel, Yafa’s grandson, 38-year-old Tamir, who was part of the Nir Oz emergency squad that defended the kibbutz, was also taken to Gaza. 53-year-old Shiri Weiss and her daughter, 18-year-old Noga, were taken from Be’eri along with Shiri’s husband, 58-year-old Ilan Weiss, who is Noga’s father. Shiri is an accountant at the kibbutz agricultural association. 62-year-old Adrian Aviva Siegel was taken from her home in Kfar Aza along with her husband, 64-year-old Keith, whose brother told the BBC. Keith is believed to be one of the remaining hostages. 78-year-old Margalit Moses was kidnapped from her home in Kibbutz Nir Oz. Her family said that as a cancer survivor, she had other health issues that required almost constant medical care.

72-year-old Adina Moshe was kidnapped from Nir Oz. According to a group representing many of the hostages and their families, her husband, Said Moshe, was killed in the attack. Afterward, her family identified her in a video clip, sandwiched between two Hamas fighters on a motorcycle. After her release, 84-year-old Elma Avraham was airlifted to Soroka Hospital in Beersheba in serious condition. A spokesperson for the community said she had lived in Kibbutz Nahal Oz for almost 50 years before her abduction. Prior to the deal between Israel and Hamas, four hostages were released and another was rescued by Israeli forces: two Americans – Judith Raanan and her daughter, Natalie Raanan – were released on Friday, October 20th. Two older women – Nurit Cooper and Yocheved Lifshitz – were released on Monday, October 23rd. An Israeli soldier – Ori Megidish – was freed during a ground operation in Gaza on October 29th.

During the ceasefire, 20 foreign workers were released. 19 of them were from Thailand. 39-year-old Bunthong Phankhong and his girlfriend, Natawaree Mullakan, were released by Hamas on November 24th. Bunthong’s sister, Urai Chantachat, told BBC Thai that the family was “overjoyed.” She said: “Our family has been suffering for more than a month, but we never thought he was dead. We believed he was still alive.” She added that he had been working in Israel for five years when he was kidnapped and was the main breadwinner for the family. There were initial fears that Wichai Kalapat was among the Thai nationals killed in the Hamas attacks until his girlfriend received a message that he was being held hostage in Gaza. She told the BBC she was “very happy” as she did not think he would be among those released. On the same day, seven other hostages were also released. Their names are Uthai Thunsri, Boodi Sangboon, Bancha Kongmanee, Witoon Phumi, Mongkol Pajuaubon, Santi Boonphrom, and Uthai Sangnuan.

According to the country’s Prime Minister, Srettha Thavisin, Nattapon Onkaew and Komkrit Chombua were among four Thai nationals released on November 25th. Anucha Angkaew was also released. His wife, Wanida Marsa, told BBC Thai that her husband, who had been working on an avocado farm for almost two years, was one of those captured by Hamas militants. The fourth person released was Mani Jirachat, who went to work in Israel four years ago, according to his father in an interview on Thai television. He was captured by Hamas along with five other workers who were hiding together. It was announced that on November 26th, Wichian Temthong, Surin Kaesornon, and Pongsawan Pinakalo had been released. Two more Thai hostages were released on Tuesday, November 28th – Owat Suriyasri and Phatthanayut Thongsokri – and four were released the following day. Their names are Phiphat Ratanadilok, Kong Saelaow, Jakrapan Sikna, and Chalermchai Sangkaew.

33-year-old Filipino, Gilenno “Jimmy” Layano Pacheco, was also released under the same agreement. The father of three worked as a caregiver in Israel for 80-year-old Amita Ben Zvi, who was killed in the attack on Nir Oz.