
Israel on Saturday released 200 Palestinian prisoners as part of a fragile ceasefire agreement that ended its 15-month-long "genocidal" war in Gaza. In exchange for the prisoners, Hamas earlier today released four female Israeli soldiers to the Red Cross.
Out of the 200 prisoners, seventy were deported to Egypt and have not been able to meet their relatives in Gaza. This includes several high profile Palestinian fighters including Mohammad al-Ardah, who was part of a jailbreak in 2021 and Mohammed al-Tous, who has been in Israeli jail for almost four decades after being arrested in 1985 during a shootout along the Jordanian border.
According to Qahera TV, the state-run media of Egypt, the deported prisoners, were released at the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing with the Gaza Strip.
It's the second exchange since the ceasefire took effect last weekend, halting Israel's war on Gaza for at least six weeks during which dozens of Israeli hostages and hundreds of Palestinian captives will be freed while humanitarian aid will be allowed to enter the starvation-struck territory.
The four soldiers- Karina Ariev, Daniella Gilboa, Naama Levy and Liri Albag-appeared to be in good condition and were smiling as they waved to the crowd in Gaza City’s Palestine Square, where they were handed over to the Red Cross. The soldiers carried a bag each, similar to those that were seen in the hands of the hostages released by Hamas on Sunday. The bags reportedly contained gifts by Hamas including souvenirs from Gaza and certificates.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday walked back on an agreement allowing displaced Palestinians' return to northern Gaza stating that it will not be allowed before the release of a female civilian captive, Arbel Yehoud. Israel had been expecting Yehoud to be released today.
According to Al Jazeera, Hamas has informed the ceasefire mediators that Arbel Yehoud is alive and will be released next Saturday.
The first prisoner exchange, as part of the three-phase ceasefire agreement took place Sunday with the release of three Israeli hostages and 90 Palestinian captives.
The Palestinians released by Israel on Sunday include Khalida Jarrar, leader of the leftist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and a feminist activist.
Jarrar has been repeatedly arrested by Israel since 2015 for being vocal about Palestinian prisoner rights and being affiliated with PFLP, which is considered a "terrorist" group by Israel. Her most recent arrest was in December 2023.
Another prominent Palestinain prisoner who was released on Sunday is journalist Rula Hassanein, an editor for the Ramallah-based Wattan Media Network.
30-year-old Hassanein was arrested in March 2024, months after she gave birth to her twins Elia and Youssef. Her son Youssef died three hours later and Elia was in an incubator for the first 40 days of her life.
Elia, who was nine months old at the time of Hassanein's arrest suffered from a rare condition triggered by a poor immune system which made her difficult to feed, leaving her solely reliant on the mother's breast milk.
Israel however rejected Hassanein's pleas to breastfeed her daughter despite multiple requests. She was tried before an Israeli military court at the Ofer Prison and was charged with incitement on social media over posts that reportedly included retweets on X and her expression of frustration over the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza, according to Al Jazeera.
Meanwhile, calls have intensified for the release of Palestinians abducted from Gaza by Israeli forces during the war. This includes Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of the Kamal-Adwan hospital in the north of the Gaza Strip, who was detained by Israeli forces during a deadly raid on the hospital and whose whereabouts are still unknown.
According to the ceasefire agreement, in the first phase which lasts 42 days, 33 Israeli captives are to be released by Hamas in exchange for up to 1,900 Palestinian prisoners.
Israel has however violated the ceasefire agreement and killed a Palestinian child on the second day after the deal came into effect. It has also launched deadly attacks in the occupied West Bank killing and detaining several Palestinians.
The UN on Friday raised concerns about Israel's use of warlike mechanisms in the occupied West Bank in violation of international human rights law.
"The deadly Israeli operations in recent days raise serious concerns about unnecessary or disproportionate use of force, including methods and means developed for warfighting, in violation of international human rights law, norms and standards applicable to law enforcement operations,” UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Thameen al-Kheetan told a media briefing in Geneva.
At least 12 Palestinians have been killed and several others wounded in Israel's attacks on the occupied territory, which escalated since the signing of the ceasefire agreement with Hamas.
Israel's war on Gaza, found by UN experts and human rights organisations to be a "genocide," has killed at least 47,000 Palestinians including more than 18,000 children, over 200 journalists and a thousand healthcare workers.
(WIth inputs from Associated Press)