Gaza, MINA – Israel has released 596 Palestinian detainees from prison as part of the seventh exchange under the Gaza ceasefire and prisoner-hostage exchange agreement with Hamas, Anadolu Agency reported.
The release came after the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas handed over the bodies of four Israeli hostages to the Red Cross.
According to the official Palestinian news agency Wafa, 37 Palestinians were released in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, and five in East Jerusalem.
One detainee, who was received by the Palestinian Red Crescent Society in a coma, was transferred to a hospital in the West Bank.
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A total of 456 Palestinians were freed and transferred to the Gaza Strip, according to Saleh Al-Hams, director of nursing at the European Gaza Hospital in Khan Younis.
“The detainees are in extremely emaciated conditions, with some unable to walk due to severe beatings and torture they endured,” Hams said.
He added that “most of the detainees suffer from skin diseases, and one case was treated in the hospital overnight for pulmonary fibrosis.”
Health officials noted that among those released were 15 healthcare staff who had been detained from hospitals during the Israeli war on Gaza.
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According to Hamas, 11 of those freed to the Gaza Strip were detainees serving life sentences or long-term sentences who had been captured before October 7, 2023, while the others were detained by Israeli forces in Gaza after that date.
Hamas also added that 97 detainees serving life sentences or long-term sentences were deported to Egypt.
Amani Sarahneh of the Palestinian Detainees Society told Anadolu that Israeli authorities had blocked the release of 46 children and female detainees.
She added that Israeli authorities delayed their release until a full verification of the bodies received from Gaza was completed.
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With the transfer of four more bodies on Wednesday night, Hamas completed the release of 33 Israeli nationals, including eight bodies, under the first phase of the 42-day ceasefire, which ends this weekend.
Israeli officials estimate that 59 Israelis remain detained in Gaza, with at least 20 of them still alive. []
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
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