Gilad Shalit, the former IDF soldier captured by Hamas and held in captivity in the Gaza Strip for more than five years, got engaged over the weekend.
A selfie featuring a smiling Shalit, 33, and girlfriend Nitzan Shabbat displaying her diamond engagement ring, was posted to Shabbat’s Instagram account. Shalit reportedly proposed to her on Friday, which was also Israel’s Valentine’s Day.
Shalit was captured by Hamas in a cross-border raid via tunnels near Gaza on June 25, 3006, and was held prisoner for five years and four months by the terrorist organization.
Debate as to how to secure his release was a source of political debate in Israel, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ultimately agreeing to release 1,027 convicted terrorists in exchange for Shalit. Many of the released terrorists had been serving long sentences, including life imprisonment, for conducting and planning terror attacks that killed Israelis.
After his highly publicized release, Shalit became a sports reporter. He dated Adi Sigler for four years before the couple split in 2017, and has reportedly been in a relationship with Shabbat for at least a year.