Ramallah: A second batch of 200 Palestinian prisoners was released on Saturday under a Gaza ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement between Hamas and Israel.
According to Anadolu Agency, televised footage showed the arrival of 114 prisoners to the West Bank city of Ramallah from the Ofer Military Prison aboard three International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) buses. Thousands of Palestinians gathered in Ramallah to celebrate their release. In addition, sixteen prisoners, accompanied by Red Cross representatives, arrived at the European Hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, receiving a warm welcome from the crowd.
Egypt’s state-affiliated Al-Qahera News channel reported that two buses carrying 70 freed Palestinian prisoners arrived in Egypt under the Gaza ceasefire agreement. The Prisoners’ Media Office stated that the freed prisoners include 121 who had been serving life sentences and 79 with lengthy sentences. It added that 70 of those serving life sentences will be sent outside the Palestinian territories.
The freed prisoners include 137 from Palestinian resistance group Hamas, 26 from the Fatah group, 29 from Islamic Jihad, three from the Palestinian Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and one from the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, along with four others without any party affiliation. The list features Mohammed al-Tous, the longest-serving Palestinian prisoner in Israeli jails, who was arrested in 1985 and sentenced to life in prison.
The second batch of Palestinian prisoners set off from Israel’s Ketziot Prison in the Negev desert. Hamas issued a statement, saying, ‘Today we force the criminal occupier to open its prisons (to free) our heroic prisoners. This is our pledge to them for freedom, and for our people to continue on the path of independence and self-determination.’
Under the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire, Israel is set to withdraw from the Netzarim Corridor area, allowing displaced Palestinians to return to northern Gaza. The first six-week phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement took effect on January 19, suspending the conflict that has resulted in significant casualties and injuries since October 7, 2023.
The three-phase ceasefire agreement involves a prisoner exchange and aims for a permanent truce and withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. The ongoing conflict has led to widespread destruction and a humanitarian crisis. The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli leaders for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice regarding its actions in the enclave.