Exactly two years after the start of the war, according to the Hebrew calendar, former hostages Eitan Horn and Nimrod Cohen, who survived more than 700 days in Hamas captivity were released from the hospital and returned home to emotional welcomes in their hometowns.
The two were discharged Thursday from Tel Aviv’s Ichilov Medical Center, three days after returning to Israel as part of the latest stage in negotiations that secured their release from Gaza.
Nimrod Cohen returns home
(Video: Meir Turgeman)
Horn, 28, arrived at his home in Kfar Saba, where hundreds of residents lined the streets waving Israeli flags, clapping, and singing the national anthem, “Hatikvah.” Supporters cheered as his car approached, shouting words of joy and welcome.
“I’m excited — I have no words,” Horn said, moments after stepping out of the car. “I always believed I would come home. I’m here only because of the people. It’ll take me a few days to process this. This is the happiest day of my life.”
Eitan Horn returns home
(Video: Miki Schmidt, Yair Sagi)
His mother, Ruti Strum, spoke to reporters outside the family’s home. “We received the nation’s hug the entire time,” she said. “I knew from the first day. I told everyone — my boys are coming back alive. And now, here it is.”
Eitan’s brother, Iair Horn, who was also held hostage in Gaza before being separated from him, said the family is now focused on rebuilding its life. “Now we’ll begin the family’s rehabilitation,” he said. “We hope that with the strength and energy of the people of Israel, we’ll succeed. We still have hostages in Gaza, and we won’t stop until the last one is home.”
Ichilov Medical Center said Horn had completed all required medical evaluations before his release and that the medical team will continue to accompany him and his family during his recovery.
In a statement, Horn’s family said: “After 738 difficult and long days in Hamas captivity, Eitan is finally coming home. We’re waiting for him with hugs and endless love and will support him throughout his rehabilitation. Our heart is not whole, and our struggle is not over. Eitan has returned, but that’s not enough. Only when the last hostage is home can we say we’ve fulfilled our mission and our moral duty.”
In Rehovot, residents gathered to welcome Nimrod Cohen, 31, who was also released from Hamas captivity earlier this week. As he made his way home, people stood along the streets waving Israeli flags, and a convoy of emergency and security vehicles escorted him through the city.
Cohen, who was discharged from Ichilov Hospital after completing the necessary medical checks, asked to return home as quickly as possible, the hospital said.
“Thank you to everyone who came,” Cohen said after arriving home. “I’m happy to see everyone. I love you all. They prepared me for what was waiting on the way.”
His mother, Vicky, called the community’s reception “heartwarming.” His brother, Yotam, said simply, “We succeeded,” while his sister, Romi, added, “Thank you to everyone for the fight.”
Across the city, new billboards greeted Cohen with the words, “Nimrod, how good it is that you came home,” replacing older signs that had pleaded, “Let us return and see him again.”
Rehovot Mayor Matan Dill said the entire city was moved by Cohen’s return. “Our Nimrod is coming home,” he said. “All of Rehovot holds its breath at the return of the soldier, the son, the brother, the hero of us all. After 738 days of captivity, pain and hope, we are privileged to see him again on Israeli soil, in our city, in his home. This is a great moment of light within a national day of remembrance.”
The two men’s releases came almost exactly two years after Hamas launched its deadly assault on Israel, sparking the ongoing war in Gaza. Their return home — after more than 23 months in captivity — was marked across the country as a rare moment of joy amid continuing calls to secure the release of all remaining hostages still held in the Gaza Strip.