Remains of Last American Hostage Itay Chen Returned to Israel By The Media Line Staff The body of Staff Sgt. Itay Chen, the last American hostage held in Gaza, was returned to Israel on Tuesday night, bringing a painful chapter to a close for his family after more than two years of uncertainty. Chen, a […]
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The Media Line: Remains of Last American Hostage Itay Chen Returned to Israel
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Remains of Last American Hostage Itay Chen Returned to Israel
By The Media Line Staff
The body of Staff Sgt. Itay Chen, the last American hostage held in Gaza, was returned to Israel on Tuesday night, bringing a painful chapter to a close for his family after more than two years of uncertainty.
Chen, a 19-year-old dual Israeli-American citizen from Netanya, was serving in a tank unit at the Nahal Oz base when Hamas terrorists attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023. He was killed in the assault and his body was taken into Gaza, along with his fellow soldiers Capt. Daniel Perez, Sgt. Tomer Leibovitz, and Matan Angrest. The latter was captured alive and released last month, while the remains of Perez and Leibovitz were returned earlier.
The IDF confirmed that Chen’s remains were handed to the Red Cross before being transferred to Israeli troops. A military rabbi led a brief ceremony as the flag-draped casket arrived, followed by an escort to the Abu Kabir forensic institute for identification. “After 760 days, Itay is back home,” his father, Ruby Chen, wrote on X.
Born in the United States and raised in Netanya, Chen was described by friends and family as joyful, compassionate, and full of energy. He had switched shifts with another soldier that weekend so he could attend his younger brother Alon’s bar mitzvah the following week—a plan cut short by the October 7 onslaught. His father recalled that Itay’s final message came as his base came under heavy bombardment.
The Chen family became a leading voice for hostage families, with Ruby Chen addressing the UN and global media to press for his son’s return. Despite being informed months earlier that Itay had been killed, his parents continued to speak of him in the present tense, refusing to sit shiva until his body came home.
The Hostages Families Forum said Itay’s return “provides some measure of comfort” while reaffirming their vow to keep fighting until every captive and body is recovered. Under the current ceasefire terms brokered through President Donald Trump’s peace plan, Hamas is required to return all hostages and remains still held in Gaza—seven of which are believed to remain.