JERUSALEM (VINnews)  — Former Hamas hostage Elkana Bohbot and his wife, Rivka, have welcomed a baby girl, giving their firstborn son, Re’em, a little sister, just 10 and a half months after Bohbot returned home from more than two years in Hamas captivity.

Bohbot announced the birth Friday in a post on Instagram, sharing a family photograph with Rivka and their newborn daughter. He accompanied the announcement with Mizmor LeTodah (“A Psalm of Thanksgiving”).

The birth comes less than a year after Bohbot was freed from captivity in Gaza, where he was held for 738 days after being abducted during the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on the Nova music festival near Re’im.

Bohbot, who worked as part of the Nova festival production team, remained at the scene during the attack and helped treat and evacuate wounded partygoers before he was abducted. He was eventually released in October 2025 as part of a hostage deal and reunited with Rivka and their son.

During his captivity, Bohbot’s family, led by Rivka, waged a relentless campaign for his release. At one point, after his condition reportedly deteriorated, his captors showed him a photograph of his young son in an apparent attempt to encourage him.

The couple revealed in April that they were expecting another child. In a video shared on social media, Bohbot appeared wearing a cap bearing the word “Dad”. The couple described the announcement with the words, “Our story isn’t over. It continues to grow.”

The pregnancy carried particular emotional significance for the family. During Bohbot’s captivity, Re’em had asked his mother why he did not have a brother or sister. Rivka told him that they had to wait for his father to come home first.

Bohbot later said that he, too, thought about the possibility of having another child while he was being held in Gaza. In an interview, he recalled worrying that he might never return home and regretting that Re’em might never have a sibling. After his release, the couple discovered that Rivka was pregnant.

Rivka described the pregnancy as a symbol of the family’s recovery and resilience, saying that she had always viewed “bringing life” as their form of rebuilding and victory. Bohbot called the pregnancy a dream and a miracle.

The couple has continued to speak publicly about the difficult process of rebuilding their lives following Bohbot’s return. In a June interview, they said that the experience of captivity had profoundly changed their relationship and family life, and that they were still undergoing a lengthy process of rehabilitation and rebuilding.

Now, less than a year after Bohbot’s return, the family has entered a new chapter with the arrival of their daughter.