October 7 · Personal story
Edan Alexander
Abducted
October 7, 2023
Abduction location
Israel
Current outcome
Released alive · May 12, 2025
Released alive after 584 days in captivity and reunited with family at Re’im.
01
Before captivity
Alexander grew up in New Jersey and moved to Israel at 18, ABC News reported after his release. His family described him as an Israeli-American soldier, and the Associated Press reported that he had lived in Maryland as a young child, graduated from high school in Tenafly, New Jersey, then moved to Israel in 2022 and volunteered for the Israeli army.
02
October 7
Alexander was 19 and serving in the Israel Defense Forces when he was captured on October 7, 2023, ABC News reported. A Hebrew Ynet article published just before his release records that the family had pursued his return from the United States and Israel since the attack; his father, Adi, said the family knew negotiations were under way but had been surprised by the sudden news of an expected release. A Russian-language Vesty-Ynet live report later states that he was abducted that morning and was a soldier in the Golani Brigade.
03
Captivity
Alexander spent 584 days in captivity. In an interview his parents gave the Associated Press after his return, they said he told them he was kept mostly underground and moved between tunnels with other hostages. His father said food was scarce and he rarely saw sunlight or breathed fresh air; at the beginning, he was handcuffed, sometimes with a sack over his head, and interrogated. The family’s account also said he had periods of near starvation.
04
Return
Alexander was released on May 12, 2025, after 584 days. A Vesty-Ynet report from that day says he was handed to the Red Cross in Gaza and then transferred to Israeli forces and the reception point at Re’im. ABC News reported that he reunited there with his parents and a sibling. His father described the embrace as unbelievable; his mother said the family was grateful for the ordinary possibility of sitting beside him. The release followed direct U.S.-Hamas negotiations, according to the reports, and did not involve a hostage exchange for him.
05
After returning
In interviews on May 13 and May 20, Alexander’s parents described the first days after his return. ABC News quoted his mother saying the family needed to give him time; the AP later reported that he initially could not eat for two days and that his parents focused on small moments together. The AP also reported that the family intended to resume its efforts for the people still held in Gaza after catching their breath.