The IDF Spokesperson confirmed that following completion of the identification process by the National Center for Forensic Medicine in coordination with Israel Police and the Military Rabbinate, IDF representatives notified the family of hostage Ran Gvili that their loved one has been identified and will be brought to burial. The announcement Israelis, Jews, and their supporters worldwide have been waiting for has now arrived – there are no more Israeli hostages in Gaza since 2014.
Sgt. 1st Class Ran Gvili, a Yasam (Police Special Patrol Unit) fighter, was 24 years old at the time of his death. He was killed on the morning of October 7, 2023, and his body was taken to the Gaza Strip, according to IDF intelligence.
Gvili was returned to Israel after 843 days in Gaza, as part of the ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel brokered by the US, under which all remaining hostages held by Hamas and affiliated organizations are to be returned to Israel. The recovery efforts gained approval with the opening of the Rafah crossing at US insistence, following IDF intelligence that was confirmed by the terror organization.
The searches, conducted as part of Operation Brave Heart, focused on a Muslim cemetery in northern Gaza near the Shujaiyya neighborhood, along the seam line between Israeli-controlled territory demarcated by the Yellow Line and Hamas-controlled territory.
Gvili fought bravely, at great personal risk, in the battle at Alomim (kibbutz near Gaza border) on October 7. On that Saturday morning, Gvili left his home in Meitar for the Gaza border communities – despite suffering from a broken shoulder. There, he saved more than 100 people from the Nova Festival and eliminated 14 terrorists before being captured. An expert committee determined on January 30 that Gvili was not alive.
His father, Itzik Gvili, said at the time, "Rani said he wouldn't let his friends fight alone, and that despite the broken shoulder, he could hold a gun. I won't forget his look. As if he said, 'This is what I've been waiting for my whole life.'" Gvili arrived at the Beersheba police station, went out to battle at Alomim, and was shot in the hand and leg.
In recent months, Gvili's parents, Talik and Itzik, conducted a public struggle for his return and to ensure he would not be forgotten after he remained the last fallen soldier held hostage by Hamas. They even accompanied Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on his recent meeting with US President Donald Trump at the Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, and received a promise that every effort would be made to return him before advancing to Phase 2 of the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
"Ran Gvili, the last hostage, has been returned home," a statement from the Hostages and Missing Families Forum read. "First to enter, last to return. Staff Sgt. Ran (Rani) Gvili from Meitar was a Yasam Negev fighter in the Southern District. Ran was proud to be a police officer and wear the blue uniform. On the morning of grim Saturday, Rani was injured at his home with a broken shoulder following a motorcycle accident he had."
