About Edan Alexander. In interviews and speeches at dozens of rallies held in his name over the past two years, friends and relatives described Alexander as a warm, funny, and athletic teenager.

Edan’s emotional extended family cheered and chanted as they gathered in Tel Aviv and his hometown in Tenafly, NJ, to watch his televised release, wearing shirts emblazoned with his name.

By Wednesday, Edan was on his phone, FaceTiming with his cousins, his friends from high school and his girlfriend. “He’s doing regular 21-year-old stuff,” Mr. Alexander said.