Body of hostage Hanan Yablonka, father of two, returned to Israel

Hanan Yablonka, 42, from Tel Aviv, was recovered by IDF soldiers on Wednesday.

 Hanan Yablonka. (photo credit: Hostages and Missing Families Forum)
Hanan Yablonka.
(photo credit: Hostages and Missing Families Forum)

The body of 42-year-old Tel Aviv resident Hanan Yablonka was recovered by IDF soldiers on Thursday night during an operation in Gaza.

Yablonka, a father of two children, Liron, aged 9, and Emily, 12, fled the Nova party during Hamas's attack on October 7.

Yablonka was unaccounted for until January 24, when it was confirmed he was being held hostage in Gaza.

When he was confirmed to be a hostage, his father, Reuven Yablonka, told N12, "We now have hope. We've known for almost 100 days that he might have been captured - now we have received the positive news. We don't know his condition, but we hope to understand more in the near future."

 Hanan Yablonka (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON UNIT)
Hanan Yablonka (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON UNIT)

Health condition

Yablonka had hypothyroidism and Addison's disease, for which he required medication. He was one of the hostages with medical conditions for whom medications were transferred into Gaza in January, under mediation by Qatar.

According to reports from February of this year, his medication, along with the medications of other hostages, may never have reached their intended recipients.