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Join on Telegram Doha – Israel released 183 Palestinian prisoners on today’s prisoner exchange, including 18 serving life sentences and 54 serving lengthy sentences, as part of an ongoing ceasefire agreement with Hamas. The release came after Hamas freed three Israeli captives earlier in the day.
According to the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club in Ramallah, 150 of the released detainees were transferred to Gaza, with three buses carrying freed Palestinians arriving in the southern city of Khan Younis.
The remaining prisoners were released in the occupied West Bank, with some reportedly being deported outside the territory.
The Palestinian Prisoner’s Society reported that many of the released prisoners showed signs of mistreatment.
“Once again, every time prisoners are released, we find the prisoners’ bodies reflecting the level of crimes committed against them, including torture that is unprecedented in its level after October 7,” the organization stated.
Hamas said in an official statement that released prisoners were being transferred to medical facilities in Gaza “to receive treatment for the abuse and torture that they were subjected to” in Israeli prisons.
The group called on international organizations to hold Israel accountable for what it described as “war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
Among those released were 111 Palestinians detained in Gaza since October 7, 2023. A Hamas official, speaking anonymously, clarified that these detainees “have no connection to the Al-Aqsa Flood,” referring to the group’s October 7 attack.
The exchange marked the fourth such swap in total and the second this week between Hamas and Israel.
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Hamas released three Israeli captives – Yarden Bibas, Keith Siegel, and Ofer Kalderon – with the handover occurring in Khan Younis and Gaza City under the supervision of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Khalil Alhalbi, father of one released Palestinian prisoner, told Al Jazeera: “I feel joy because my son is freed from an Israeli jail, but also grief that his release came at a time when all our homes have been levelled, many loved ones killed and thousands injured.”
The exchange coincided with the reopening of the Rafah border crossing, allowing 50 sick and wounded Palestinian patients to travel to Egypt for medical treatment – the first such evacuation in nearly nine months.
Sari Bashi, program director at Human Rights Watch, criticized the need for such negotiations. “I wish these acts were not bargained, because they should not be bargained,” she said. “The dozens of people from Gaza who were arrested and held without trial and due process should have been released immediately.”
The current phase of the ceasefire deal is expected to see a total of 33 Israeli captives freed in exchange for approximately 1,900 Palestinian prisoners. Negotiations for a second phase of the agreement are scheduled to begin on Monday.
