Mourners were gathering in Meitar in southern Israel on Wednesday for the funeral of Ran Gvili, the last hostage to be returned from the Gaza Strip.

Gvili, a 24-year-old off-duty police officer, was killed during the Hamas-led terror attacks on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, that killed around 1,200 people. Palestinian militants took his body to Gaza along with 250 other hostages.

The attacks triggered a massive Israeli military campaign in the Gaza Strip, which killed over 71,000 Palestinians, according to Palestinian health authorities.

Many of the hostages were freed during two brief ceasefires in 2023 and 2025, while dozens died in captivity.

A ceasefire deal brokered by US President Donald Trump in October 2025 paved the way for Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups to return the hostages in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners.

Gvili's remains were brought home by Israeli forces on Monday.

Nation pays tribute to 'hero of Israel'

Hundreds of people lined the roads to watch a convoy carrying Gvili's body from the military base at Camp Shura in central Israel to Gvili's hometown of Meitar. Police officers stood at attention to salute the coffin as it passed.

A large banner with a portrait of Gvili was hung at a stadium in Meitar, where hundreds of mourners, police officers and soldiers gathered for the funeral procession.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog, who attended the ceremony, asked Gvili's family for "forgiveness that we were not there for him."

"An entire nation mourns with you today," Herzog said.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also spoke at the memorial service, where some attendees carried Israeli flags, and some wore the yellow ribbon that has symbolized the country's hostage ordeal for the past two years.

"We are determined to complete our missions: to disarm Hamas and demilitarise Gaza, and we will succeed. Let our enemies know that anyone who raises a hand against Israel will pay an exorbitant price," Netanyahu said. Hamas is classified as a terrorist organization by Israel, the European Union as well as the United States and other countries.

On the eve of the funeral on Tuesday, Netanyahu said Gvili's return from Gaza meant that Israel had "fully completed the sacred mission of returning all of our hostages."

"Many generations will draw inspiration from Ran Gvili, a hero of Israel, and from all our other heroes... This is the generation of heroism. This is the generation of victory," Netanyahu said.

After the funeral procession and ceremony at the stadium, Gvili's remains will be buried on Wednesday afternoon at a cemetery in Meitar.

What does Gvili's funeral mean for the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire?

Now that Gvili's remains have been returned, attention will shift to the next phase of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, which addresses the enclave's demilitarization, security measures, governance and reconstruction.

Israel has insisted that it would not proceed with the second phase of the ceasefire until the remains of every hostage had been returned.

On Tuesday, Netanyahu said Israel would reopen the only border crossing between Gaza and Egypt at Rafah, which has been shut since May 2024.

Netanyahu did not specify when the border would reopen, but he did say it would open to foot traffic in both directions and that cargo would not be allowed through.

The prime minister said Israel's focus was on disarming Hamas and destroying its network of underground tunnels. Netanyahu said Gaza's reconstruction would not begin until the enclave is demilitarized.

"As I agreed with President Trump, there are only two possibilities: either it will be done the easy way or it will be done the hard way," he said at a news conference on Tuesday, adding that "In any case, it will happen."

The prime minister also reiterated his opposition to the creation of a Palestinian state and his insistence that no Turkish or Qatari soldiers be allowed to take part in an international security force in Gaza.

While Gvili's return has "closed the circle" for Israel, President Herzog said, the conditions in Gaza, where many families are living in tents without heating, remain dire.

Many Gazans are still desperately waiting for the reopening of the Rafah border.

"The crossing is supposed to open now after the last soldier's body was found," said Ali Abu Al-Eish, a former resident of Rafah, according to the AP news agency. "Why is it still closed? We have many sick people here."

According to Gaza's Hamas-run Health Ministry, about 20,000 Palestinians need to be medically evacuated from the war-torn enclave.

Edited by: Sean Sinico