Eliya Cohen, 27, is a resident of Tzur Hadassah near Jerusalem. On Oct. 7, 2023, he attended the Supernova music festival near Kibbutz Re’im in southern Israel with his fiancée, Ziv Abud, her nephew Amit and Amit’s girlfriend, Karin. During the attack, while fleeing to a bomb shelter, Amit and Karin were murdered. Ziv survived by hiding under their bodies, while Eliya was taken captive. Eliya Cohen was released from Hamas captivity on Saturday, Feb. 22, after being held hostage for 505 days since his abduction during the Hamas massacre of Oct. 7.
