Ninety Palestinians were released from Israeli prisons and greeted by large crowds of jubilant relatives, friends and supporters as they returned home to the occupied West Bank in the country’s first prisoner exchange. Hamas-Israel ceasefire after the release of three Israeli captives in Gaza. .
On Monday around 1 a.m. local time (2300 GMT), Red Cross buses carrying the 90 Palestinian prisoners arrived in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, where they were greeted by crowds of thousands despite warnings Israeli forces that the celebrations would not be permitted. .
Among the freed Palestinians were 69 women and 21 teenagers – some as young as 12 – from the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem.
Among them was Khalida Jarrar, 62, a leading member of the left-wing Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, who had been held for six months in solitary confinement under “administrative detention,” which allows authorities Israeli authorities to imprison suspects indefinitely without charge or trial. verdict.
In Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, crowds carried many repatriated prisoners on their shoulders in an emotional show of support, while others shouted and whistled. Some rally participants carried the flags of Fatah, Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and other armed resistance groups.
Seven hours earlier, three captive Israeli women, aged between 25 and 35, were released in Gaza.
Bushra al-Tawil, a Palestinian journalist imprisoned in Israel in March 2024, was also among the prisoners released on Monday.
Tawil said she began her journey at 3 a.m. (0100 GMT) Sunday morning, when she was taken from another Israeli prison before being released. In the second prison, she was grouped with other Palestinians awaiting release.
“The wait was extremely hard. But thank God we were sure that at any moment we would be released,” she said.
Tawil said his father, who is also incarcerated in an Israeli prison, will also be released soon.
“I was worried about him. He is still a prisoner, but I just received good news: he will be released under this agreement,” she added.
Amanda Abu Sharkh, 23, from Ramallah, was among the crowd of hundreds gathered to greet the freed prisoners.
“We came here to witness it and feel the emotions, just like the families of the prisoners released today,” Abu Sharkh said.
“All the prisoners released today feel like family to us. They are part of us, even if they are not related by blood,” she told the AFP news agency.
Muhammad, 20, said he came from Ramallah with his friends as soon as he learned the prisoners would be released.
Recently released himself from Israeli Ofer prison, he expressed his “great joy” at the idea of reuniting the families.
“I know a lot of people in prison, there are innocent people, children and women,” he said.
The prisoner exchange between Hamas and Israel is the first of its kind since November 2023.
The exact number of Palestinians to be released under the ceasefire agreement is still unknown, with estimates ranging from around 1,000 to almost 2,000.
In the first phase of the deal, Hamas is expected to return a total of 33 Israeli prisoners over the next 42 days – with the next release scheduled for Saturday.
The second phase of ceasefire negotiations is due to begin in two weeks.
More than 46,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war began on October 7, and nearly 90 percent of Gaza’s population has been forcibly displaced by Israeli evacuation orders and attacks.
