Who are the last Israeli hostages expected home — and what the Gaza deal means

(Representative Image)

Under a US-brokered framework, Israel and Hamas reached terms for the release of all remaining captives in Gaza alongside a partial Israeli withdrawal. Of the 48 hostages still held, Israeli officials believe 20 are alive, two are unconfirmed, and the rest are deceased. Returns are expected in the coming hours or days, more than two years after the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks that killed about 1,200 people in Israel and led to thousands of Palestinian deaths in the ensuing conflict, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Who is still in captivity

The list includes festival-goers abducted from the Tribe of Nova music event — among them guitarist Guy Gilboa-Dalal and his friend Evyatar David, plus Alon Ohel, a pianist whose family placed a public piano in Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square. Others are kibbutz residents from Nir Oz, Kfar Aza and Nahal Oz, including brothers Ariel and David Cunio, Argentine-Israeli Eitan Horn, and soldier Matan Zangauker. Twin brothers Gali and Ziv Berman were taken from Kfar Aza, where investigators later documented extreme brutality.

The deceased and unconfirmed

Israel expects to receive the remains of several captives, including some soldiers. Two cases — Tamir Nimrodi, a 20-year-old soldier seized at a northern Gaza checkpoint, and Bipin Joshi, a 24-year-old Nepali agriculture student who helped peers escape before being captured — remain unconfirmed but are feared dead.

Stories behind the names

Profiles underscore the range of lives interrupted. At Nova, rockets streaked overhead at dawn as militants blocked exits, leading to mass killings and kidnappings of dancers and on-site staff such as ushers and guards (Eitan Mor, Bar Kupershtein, Rom Braslavski). In the kibbutzim, families were separated: Ariel Cunio’s fiancée and David Cunio’s wife and daughters were freed in earlier exchanges; the Bibas family became a symbol of the tragedy when the mother and two red-haired children died in captivity and were returned earlier this year.

How we got here

The agreement follows earlier partial exchanges and months of indirect talks. Washington’s latest push produced a broader framework: hostages for prisoners, a phased Israeli pullback inside Gaza, and steps meant to stabilize conditions on the ground. Israel says 200 US troops will support implementation; some Arab partners that have coordinated quietly with Israel on regional security may also assist with aspects of the ceasefire oversight.

What comes next

Repatriation will involve medical evaluation, identification of remains, and reunions under clinical supervision. For living returnees, recovery can be lengthy — freed hostages previously described underground confinement, shackling and untreated injuries. For families receiving remains, closure may finally be possible. Political debates will continue over the costs of the deal, prisoner releases and the pace of Israeli withdrawal.

Why it matters beyond Israel and Gaza

The return of the last captives would mark a turning point after a war that reshaped regional politics, strained global alliances and produced deep civilian suffering. Even if implementation is smooth, the hardest questions remain: who governs Gaza next, how to prevent renewed militia buildup, and how to rebuild shattered communities on both sides. For now, the focus is on names and faces — soldiers, brothers, music lovers — finally coming home.