Hundreds of Palestinian prisoners have been freed from Israeli prisons after the release of three Israeli captives in Gaza under the Gaza ceasefire deal.
The captives namely; Alexander Trufanov, Sagui Dekel-Chen and Yair Horn were handed over to the ICRC in Khan Younis.
Hamas released the three Israeli captives in the sixth such exchange following days of tense negotiations that threatened to undo the precarious ceasefire.
Dozens of armed Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters guarded the square where the handover took place.
Hundreds of Palestinian civilians, including women, children and the elderly, gathered behind the security cordon trying to witness the release.
Hamas issued a statement after the release saying that it was “a renewed message” to Israel.
“The release of the sixth batch of enemy prisoners confirms there is no way to free them except through negotiations and by adhering to the requirements of the ceasefire agreement.”
Hamas
With Saturday’s handover, the number of captives released by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad has reached 25 since the ceasefire began on January 19.
In return, Israel began returning 369 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails on Saturday, most without any charges or convictions. It is the largest number of Palestinians to be freed since the beginning of the truce.
Footage showed a busload of Palestinian prisoners from Ofer Prison arriving in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, where they were met by relatives and cheering supporters.
More buses full of Palestinians pulled out of an Israeli prison in the Negev desert heading towards Gaza.
At least four of those freed were immediately brought to a hospital for treatment. Among the most prominent to be released is Ahmed Barghouti, 48, a close aide of iconic Palestinian political figure Marwan Barghouti.
Most of the prisoners were arrested in Gaza and will be sent back to the besieged enclave.
About 10 will be released in the occupied West Bank, one in occupied East Jerusalem, with the others being sent to Egypt and later to other countries that will accept them.
A number of Palestinians wore their shirts inside out in order to cover messages after the Israel Prison Service made them put on outfits with a Star of David logo that said, “We will not forget or forgive” in Arabic.
Israel Accused Of Assaulting Prisoners Until Moment Of Release
The Palestinian Prisoners’ Media Office said that Israeli authorities “deliberately insulted and assaulted the prisoners until the moment of their release.”
The organisation monitoring the releases added that the conditions the prisoners were released in shows the “extent of the crimes and violations inside the prisons.”
It said in a statement that he effects of torture and oppression were clear on the prisoners’ bodies, which calls for a firm stance to hold the occupation accountable for its crimes.
It called on the international community to reject a “double standard” as Israel earlier decried conditions of captives released from Gaza.
“Just as the occupation demands the return of its prisoners, our prisoners have the right to freedom and dignity, and denying that is collusion with the executioner.”
Palestinian Prisoners’ Media Office
Meanwhile, Hamas in a statement condemned the “occupation’s crime of placing racist slogans on the backs of our heroic prisoners,” and treating them with cruelty and violence, in a blatant violation of humanitarian laws and norms.
The Palestinian group said this is “in contrast to the resistance’s firm commitment to moral values in treating the occupation’s prisoners.”
