A former Israeli hostage who was held for nearly 500 days in Gaza says the return of the body of the final hostage this week means all the released captives can 'now breathe and start our lives again.' Thirty-year-old Sasha Troufanov, an Amazon electronics engineer, was taken hostage on 7 October 2023 by Palestinian Islamic Jihad gunmen. His fiancée Sapir Cohen, mother, and grandmother were also kidnapped and taken to Gaza. The women were released after more than 50 days as hostages. He was freed a year ago, after 498 days in captivity.

In his first international interview, Troufanov, on a visit to London, told BBC News that with the return on Monday of Ran Gvili's body meaning all the hostages were back 'it felt wonderful. We waited so long for this to happen.'

'I was carrying this burden ever since I came back. It was like a weight on my shoulders that kept me from coming back to my life. Although we were released, we didn't really come out of Gaza because our friends and brothers were still there.'

But the moment was bittersweet for him as Monday was also the birthday of his father Vitaly. Troufanov only discovered his father had been murdered on 7 October on the day he was released in February 2025 and realized his dad wasn't there to meet him.

Troufanov and Cohen had been visiting his family on Kibbutz Nir Oz near the border with Gaza when Palestinian gunmen stormed their homes. Cohen rolled herself up in a blanket and hid under the bed, but they were both captured. Troufanov was punched and also stabbed in the shoulder. 'I saw the terrorist with so much anger and hate in his face, holding his knife trying to stab me even more.'

As the attackers tried to take Troufanov off the kibbutz, he managed to momentarily escape but when he gave up running they still shot him twice in each leg. 'I just felt the rush of pain going through my brain and I fell to the ground then one of the terrorists hit me with the rifle from the back of my head and split it open.'

When he arrived in Gaza, he says he was then beaten by civilians and thought 'this is the moment you're going to die.' While in Gaza, Troufanov received almost no medical treatment. He was taken once to a family home and once to a hospital where his broken leg was wrapped first with a wooden broom and then with part of a metal grill.

Unlike many other hostages, he was held almost entirely in isolation: for only two of the 498 days in captivity did Troufanov see another hostage.

At the start, he was held above ground in a cage, receiving barely enough food to survive. He also experienced harassment from guards, including sexual harassment where one guard repeatedly tried to encourage him to perform sexual acts on himself, and he was filmed while showering. Troufanov was taken underground to tunnels where he spent months alone in dark, cramped, and humid conditions. 'I remember feeling that I am buried underneath the ground while I am still alive. I was losing it. I was having a hard time to find hope in this place.'

It is the first time since 2014 that there are no Israeli hostages held in Gaza. The recent violence led to a military campaign in Gaza, leaving thousands dead. The situation continues to be precarious, with calls for peace and reconstruction that Troufanov believes should focus not just on rebuilding but also on addressing the underlying causes of violence.