Israeli authorities release new list of 737 Palestinian prisoners set for release
As we reported earlier, Israel’s Justice Ministry released the names of 95 Palestinians slated to be released on Sunday in exchange for 33 Israeli captives held in Gaza, as part of the first phase of the ceasefire deal with Hamas.
Israeli authorities have now released an updated list of 737 Palestinian detainees slated for release in the first phase, which it says will take place “not before” 4pm (14:00 GMT) on Sunday.
Khalida Jarrar, a prominent leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, is on the list of people to be freed.
Palestinian journalist Bushra al-Tawil, who was released in a previous prisoner swap in 2011 between Hamas and Israel, is also listed for release.
The list includes several members of Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the Palestinian Authority’s ruling Fatah movement, who are serving life sentences, The Times of Israel reports.
What to expect from the Gaza prisoners-for-captives exchange deal
More than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, many held without charge for years within the Israeli prison system, are preparing for their first taste of freedom.
The total number of prisoners being released under the ceasefire agreement and in exchange for Israeli captives held in Gaza is unclear, but this is what we know so far:
- During the first stage of the three-phase agreement between Hamas and Israel, more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners will be exchanged for 33 of the remaining Israeli captives.
- An estimated 100 captives are believed to be still held in the war-torn territory.
- Under the terms of the agreement, Palestinian prisoners will be released in exchange for Israeli captives according to ratios agreed upon by both sides and international mediators in Doha.
- According to reports, 110 Palestinian prisoners sentenced to life by Israeli courts will be exchanged for nine ill and wounded Israeli captives. In addition, Israeli men over the age of 50 will be released in exchange for Palestinian captives at a ratio of 1:3 for those sentenced to life sentences, and 1:27 for those serving other sentences.
Israeli soldiers stand by a truck packed with shirtless Palestinian prisoners in Gaza in 2024
Nearly 300 Palestinian prisoners serving life terms to be freed in first phase: Prisoners’ Media Office
During the first phase of the ceasefire deal, 296 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences will be released, according to a statement from the Gaza-based Prisoners’ Media Office cited by the Palestinian Information Centre.
Most of the life prisoners slated for release are members of the Fatah movement, some of whom have been jailed for over three decades, said the office.
But there will be prisoners released belonging to all “Palestinian resistance factions”, it said.
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