Photo: Israel Defense Forces / CC BY-SA 2.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Gilad Shalit is a name I approach with care, because his fame came not from achievement but from circumstance. Captured in 2006 and held for over five years before his 2011 release in a prisoner exchange, he became a symbol far larger than himself, a single soldier whose name moved a nation. The long list of honorary citizenships, from Paris and Rome to Miami and Baltimore, shows how widely his story resonated. What I find meaningful is that he later built a quieter civilian life as a sports columnist and writer. To me his return to ordinary work reads as its own kind of quiet triumph.
Overview
Gilad Shalit (Hebrew: גלעד שליט, Gilˁad Šaliṭ ; born 28 August 1986) is an Israeli former soldier who, on 25 June 2006, was captured by Palestinian militants in a cross-border raid via tunnels near the Israeli border. Hamas held him captive for over five years until his release on 18 October 2011 as part of a prisoner exchange deal.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Gilad Shalit
- Name (Japanese)
- ギルアド・シャリート
- Reading
- ぎるあど・しゃりーと
- Born
- August 28, 1986 (age 39)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Virgo / Tiger
- Origin
- Nahariya, Israel
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- sports columnist / military personnel / journalist / investment advisor / writer
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- Reichman University
Awards & achievements
- 2008 honorary citizen of Paris
- 2008 honorary citizen of Rome
- 2009 honorary citizen of Miami
- 2009 honorary citizen of New Orleans
- 2011 honorary citizen of Baltimore
- 2011 honorary citizen of Pittsburgh
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Military personnel — see all → · More people from Israel →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.