Freed hostage Edan Alexander says he’s returning to the IDF next month
‘My story does not end with survival – it continues with service,’ said the Israeli-American who was held in Gaza for 584 days until May
Edan Alexander speaking at a Friends of the Israeli Defense Forces event in New York City on Sept. 17, 2025. Photo by Michael Priest Photography/FIDF
(JTA) — Just months after former hostage Edan Alexander was freed from 584 days in Hamas captivity, the Golani Brigade soldier has announced he will return to service.
“Next month, God willing, I will return to Israel. I will once again put on the IDF uniform, and I will proudly serve alongside my brothers,” Alexander said at a Friends of the Israel Defense Forces event Wednesday night in New York. “My story does not end with survival – it continues with service.”
His announcement at the FIDF gala marked his first public statements since the Trump administration negotiated his release in May. In July, he met with Trump alongside his parents at the Oval Office.
Alexander, 21, joined the IDF after graduating from high school in New Jersey and was captured while serving near the Gaza border during Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel.
Alexander, who returned to his family in Tenafly, New Jersey, following his release, was the only remaining U.S. citizen among the living hostages held in Gaza. There are now 48 remaining hostages held in Gaza, of which 20 are presumed to be alive.
In his remarks Wednesday, Alexander also called for the release of the remaining hostages, telling the crowd: “Their nightmare continues. Their families still wait. We cannot forget them. We cannot stop until they are all home.”
His appearance at the gala comes amid turmoil for the fundraising group, which has recently drawn internal allegations of financial mismanagement, cronyism and a toxic workplace culture. Two top leaders recently resigned from the FIDF, which says it has raised $306 million to support Israeli soldiers since Oct. 7. The fundraiser in New York added “millions” to that total, the group announced.
At least one other Israeli soldier taken hostage on Oct. 7 has returned to service. Ori Megidish, who was rescued by Israeli forces three weeks after her abduction, rejoined the military several months later and was assigned to an intelligence unit.
