Hamas handed over four female Israeli soldiers this morning (all looking healthy and in good spirits) under a Gaza ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement with Israel. In return, Israeli released 200 Palestinian hostages from Israeli jails.
The four freed soldiers wearing the Israeli military uniform smiled and waved on a stage at Palestine Square in Gaza City as they were transferred to representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
The Israeli army confirmed that the four freed soldiers were handed over to its forces in Gaza before being transferred to Israel.
Thousands of Palestinians gathered at the Palestine Square to witness the handover ceremony of the four Israeli soldiers, including dozens of fighters from Hamas’ armed wing, the Qassam Brigades.
The four Israelis, whose names were submitted by Hamas on Friday, are Liri Albag, 19, Daniella Gilboa, 20, Karina Ariev, 20, and Naama Levy, 20.
They are members of the Israeli army’s surveillance unit at the Nahal Oz base.
A second batch of 200 Palestinian prisoners was released on Saturday under a Gaza ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement between Hamas and Israel.
Subscribe to our newsletter and stay updated on the latest news and updates from around the Muslim world!
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.
The freed prisoners were welcomed by thousands of Palestinians who gathered in Ramallah to celebrate their release, according to an Anadolu reporter.
Sixteen prisoners, accompanied by Red Cross representatives, also arrived at the European Hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, to the warm welcome of thousands.
Egypt’s state-affiliated Al-Qahera News channel also reported that two buses carrying 70 freed Palestinian prisoners arrived in Egypt under the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
The Prisoners’ Media Office said early Saturday 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.
According to the statement, 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, in addition to four others without any party affiliation.
The list includes Mohammed al-Tous, the longest-serving Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. Tous, from the West Bank city of Bethlehem, was arrested in 1985 and sentenced to life in prison on accusations of carrying out attacks against Israeli targets.
Hamas said in a statement: “A new batch of our heroic prisoners in the occupation prisons, who are serving life sentences and long sentences, see the light today within the framework of the Al-Aqsa Flood deal.
“Today, we force the criminal occupier to open the doors of his cells to our heroic prisoners, and this is our pledge to them for freedom, and to our people to continue walking together on the path of independence and self-determination.
“Despite the unprecedented brutal aggression that targeted every inch of Gaza in its barbarity, we preserved the enemy’s prisoners, in commitment to our morals and customs, at a time when the criminal enemy tried to get rid of them, and pursued them by targeting and bombing.
“This is one of the immortal days of our Palestinian people, in which it embodies its path and choices, and confirms its rallying around its resistance, and its insistence on continuing on the path of pride and dignity, and achieving its legitimate goals of freedom and establishing its independent state with Al-Quds as its capital.”
The first six-week phase of a Gaza ceasefire agreement took effect on Jan. 19, suspending Israel’s genocidal war that has killed nearly 47,300 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured more than 111,400 since Oct. 7, 2023.
The three-phase ceasefire agreement includes a prisoner exchange and sustained calm, aiming for a permanent truce and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
The Israeli onslaught has left more than 11,000 people missing, with widespread destruction and a humanitarian crisis that has claimed the lives of many elderly people and children in one of the worst global humanitarian disasters ever.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants in November last year for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
In other developments:
- In violation of the ceasefire deal, Netanyahu’s office says Palestinians in Gaza are barred from returning to north until release of hostage Arbel Yehud. A Hamas source has told Al Jazeera that the group has informed the mediators that Arbel Yehoud is alive and will be released next Saturday.
- Hamas accused Israel on Saturday of “procrastinating” in implementing the current ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement.In a statement, Hamas said: “The (Israeli) occupation continues to procrastinate in implementing the terms of the ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement by keeping (coastal) Al-Rashid Street closed and preventing displaced pedestrians from returning from the south to the north (Gaza Strip).””We hold the occupation responsible for any delays in implementing the agreement and the repercussions this may have on subsequent phases,” added Hamas.
- Hamas fighters appeared with Israeli Tavor rifles during the handover of four female Israeli soldiers in Gaza City. The rifles, reportedly seized during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israeli military bases and settlements near Gaza, were prominently featured on podium set up at Palestine Square in Gaza City to hand over the four soldiers.
This story will be updated throughout the day…
