In a deal brokered by Qatar, 39 Palestinian prisoners have been released from Israeli prisons as part of a hostage agreement with Hamas. The release also included 13 Israeli hostages who were seized by Hamas gunmen during their attack on Israel last month. While the families of the Palestinian detainees felt relief, their joy was overshadowed by the ongoing fighting in Gaza after the four-day truce expired.
Sawsan Bkeer, the mother of 24-year-old Palestinian prisoner Marah Bkeer, expressed mixed emotions about her daughter’s release, saying, “There is no real joy, even this little joy we feel as we wait. We are still afraid to feel happy and at the same time, we do not have it in us to be happy due to what is happening in Gaza.”
More Palestinian prisoners are expected to be released in the next four days, and additional releases may occur if the truce is extended. In Beitunia, near Ramallah, a large crowd, mostly young men, welcomed the freed prisoners with cheers, honking car horns, and Palestinian flags. Some in the crowd even carried the flag of the Hamas militant group and chanted in support of the group’s armed wing spokesperson, Abu Ubaida.
Israeli commanders have vowed to release all the hostages as they continue their campaign in Gaza. According to Israeli tallies, 1,200 Israelis and foreigners were killed in the Hamas attack that triggered the Israeli bombardment of Gaza and the subsequent ground operation. The military is preparing for the next stage of the operation once the truce ends.
Ismail Shaheen, speaking from the Dheisheh refugee camp in Bethlehem, eagerly awaited the release of his daughter Fatima, who had been arrested earlier this year for an attempted stabbing. Fatima, a 32-year-old computer scientist and mother of a five-year-old daughter, was shot during her arrest. Despite the happiness of her release, Shaheen acknowledged the dire conditions in Gaza, stating, “We were happy that she was going to be released but only slightly so because we cannot ignore the dire conditions of our brothers in Gaza, where thousands have been killed.”
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