One year on, Israel and a US envoy mark return of last 20 living hostages

Israel's Foreign Ministry, the International Committee of the Red Cross and Jared Kushner, a senior American envoy, marked the first anniversary of the day the last 20 living hostages held in Gaza were released, according to a report in The Times of Israel. The hostages came back to Israel on October 13, 2025, after two years held by Hamas.

In a post on its official X account, the Foreign Ministry said the 20 had spent 738 days in captivity before their families were able to embrace them again. The ministry said the country shared the families' relief while also grieving for hostages who did not come back alive, and said it continues to stand with the survivors as they recover.

What Kushner said

Kushner, who is US President Donald Trump's son-in-law and has served as a senior American envoy, posted on X to mark the date. The Times of Israel reported that he counted being there when the hostages came home among "the most special moments" of his life. The same text was shared on X by Barak Ravid of Axios, in which the hostages' ordeal is described as "hell" and their families are praised for their strength and resilience.

According to The Times of Israel, Kushner thanked Trump for his leadership, as well as Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He also credited senior officials from Qatar, Egypt and Turkey for their part in reaching the October 2025 agreement under which the hostages were freed. Qatar, Egypt and Turkey are regional states that acted as intermediaries with Hamas, which does not negotiate directly with Israel.

The day of the release

The Jerusalem Post, in its "On This Day" feature, recalled that the return of the final living hostages coincided with a speech by Trump to the Knesset, Israel's parliament, following a ceasefire in Gaza. The paper published an image, credited to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Spokesperson's Unit, of a former hostage arriving at Sheba Medical Center, an Israeli hospital, on October 13, 2025.

A second Foreign Ministry post on the anniversary focused on the first moments of reunion between the freed captives and their relatives, and said Israelis had spent two years waiting for that day. Both ministry posts carried the hashtag #unforgo7ten, which Israeli official accounts use when referring to the hostages and the Hamas attack that started the war.

Context for readers outside Israel

Hamas is the Palestinian Islamist movement that took the hostages into Gaza, the coastal territory on Israel's southwestern border. Israel, the United States and a number of other countries designate it a terrorist organisation, and the Foreign Ministry's posts refer to it in those terms. The hostage crisis lasted for the two years of the war, and the fate of the captives was one of the most divisive and emotional issues in Israeli public life throughout that period.

The phrase "final living hostages" used across the reports matters. It refers to the 20 people who were still alive when the October 2025 agreement took effect. The Foreign Ministry's wording makes clear that other hostages did not come home alive, and the anniversary messages paired celebration of the survivors with mourning for them.

The International Committee of the Red Cross is an international humanitarian organisation that works in conflict zones. The Times of Israel reported that it also marked the anniversary, recalling the reunions and the diplomacy behind the release.

What the reports do not say

None of the reports provided give the text of the Red Cross statement, so its exact wording and any description of its own role in the release cannot be confirmed from this material. The reports do not set out the terms of the October 2025 agreement, and they do not say how many hostages died in captivity or how many bodies have been returned.

The reports also do not describe the current condition of the 20 former hostages, beyond the Foreign Ministry's statement that they are still healing. No statements from the former hostages themselves or from their families are included, and the reports do not say whether any official ceremonies were held in Israel to mark the date.