After 738 days, Ariel Cunio released from Hamas captivity in Gaza
Ariel, the youngest of four Cunio brothers, was taken captive from his Kibbutz Nir Oz home with his girlfriend, Arbel Yehud, on October 7; Yehud was released after 482 days
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After 738 days in captivity, Ariel Cunio was released on October 13, 2025, as part of phase one of US President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war in Gaza. This is the story of Ariel Cunio’s capture:
Ariel Cunio is one of four Cunio brothers who were born and raised at Kibbutz Nir Oz. He lives there with his girlfriend, Arbel Yehud, another Nir Oz native and both were taken captive by Hamas terrorists on October 7.
The kibbutz is where his grandmother, parents, three siblings and their families all live.
Cunio’s brother David, his wife Sharon and their three-year-old twins, along with Sharon’s sister Danielle and her five-year-old, were also kidnapped.
Cunio, his girlfriend and her brother, Dolev, a married father of four, were all taken captive together.
There’s little that’s known of what happened there that morning, except for the message that Ariel sent to his brother, Eitan, which read: “We are in a horror film.”
Ariel and Arbel had just returned to Nir Oz from an extended trip to South America and Central America and had adopted a puppy weeks earlier.
The Times of Israel Community.