Israeli Hostages
Accusation: Critics compare Israel's hostages to Palestinian prisoners, deny the abuse the hostages suffered or describe the kidnapped civilians as prisoners of war.
The Short Answer
On October 7, 2023, Hamas kidnapped 251 people, including babies, elderly Holocaust survivors and foreign workers. The ordeal lasted 843 days. Most came home alive through deals and rescues, while dozens returned only as bodies.
The last, police officer Ran Gvili, came home in January 2026. Hostages are innocent people taken by force, not prisoners of war.
Who Was Kidnapped
Hamas and other Gaza groups dragged 251 people across the border on October 7, 2023. The youngest, Kfir Bibas, was nine months old. The oldest were in their eighties. Some were Holocaust survivors. Others were Thai, Nepali and other foreign workers.
They were taken from their beds, from a music festival and from army posts. Many were wounded, and some were already dead when they were taken. Read more: Did Israel Provoke October 7?
How the Hostages Were Treated
Released hostages described starvation, beatings, sexual abuse and months in dark tunnels without sunlight. The Red Cross was never allowed to visit them.
In August 2024, Hamas executed six hostages in a tunnel in Rafah, among them Hersh Goldberg Polin. Shiri Bibas and her two little boys, Ariel and Kfir, were murdered in captivity. When Hamas returned their remains in February 2025, it first handed over the wrong body for Shiri.
How They Came Home
Over 100 hostages were freed in a deal in November 2023. Others came home in a ceasefire in early 2025. The last twenty living hostages were released in October 2025 under the US brokered ceasefire.
Israeli forces also rescued hostages in daring operations. In June 2024, a raid in Nuseirat freed Noa Argamani and three other men. The remains of the last hostage, Ran Gvili, were recovered in January 2026, after 843 days.
Hostages Are Not Prisoners
A hostage is an innocent person taken by force to extract concessions. Taking hostages is a war crime under the Geneva Conventions.
To bring its people home, Israel released thousands of Palestinian prisoners and detainees, including hundreds serving life sentences for murder and terrorism. Some of those freed in earlier deals went on to kill again. Yahya Sinwar, who planned October 7, was himself released in a 2011 exchange.
Key Facts
Hamas and its allies kidnapped 251 people on October 7, 2023.
The youngest hostage was nine months old.
The Red Cross never visited the hostages in Gaza.
The hostage crisis lasted 843 days and ended in January 2026.
Yahya Sinwar was freed in a 2011 prisoner exchange before planning October 7.
How to Respond
Ask how kidnapping a baby from his home can be compared with arresting a terrorist.
Remind people that hostage taking is a war crime under international law.
Share the stories and names of the hostages so they are never forgotten.
Ask why the Red Cross was never allowed to see them.
Conclusion
The hostage crisis showed the world who Hamas is. Israel moved heaven and earth to bring every last one of its people home, alive or dead. Am Yisrael Chai.