(USNewsMag.com) – As supporters of Israel celebrated the rescue of four hostages from captivity by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, one of those rescued hostages was met with the terrible news that his father died only hours before the release.
Just hours before his son’s rescue by Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Saturday, June 8th, 57-year-old Yossi Meir Jan died tragically, and his family says it was a broken heart that did him in. For eight months, the distraught father waited and prayed for the release of his son, 21-year-old Almog Meir Jan.
According to reports from Israeli media, Yossi was discovered unresponsive at his residence on Saturday. He was reportedly ill, but his family told the media that they believe he ultimately died from grief. The saddest part of Yossi’s story is that just a few hours after he died, his son was rescued.
Almog was among four hostages secured after a recent military operation that killed Hamas militants and many Palestinian civilians in the process. The other three hostages rescued were 26-year-old Noa Argamani, 27-year-old Andrey Kozlov, and 41-year-old Shlomi Ziv.
The dead man’s sister, Dina, told reporters that Yossi had been “glued to the television” ever since his son was taken hostage on Oct. 7th, 2023, and clung “to every piece of information” he could get about what was happening to his son and what Almog “was going through.” Yossi reportedly lost a great deal of weight throughout the ordeal, isolated himself from others, and that “everyone was worried” about him.
Dina recalled the moment she received a call from the IDF about her nephew’s rescue and that she immediately tried to contact Yossi but wasn’t able to reach him. When she went to his home to tell him the news, Dina discovered her brother was dead.
Yossi will be buried on Sunday, June 16th, in a private ceremony.
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