Zionist occupation delays release of 620 Palestinian detainees, including dozens of minors
The Palestinian Prisoners’ Society and the Palestinian Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs Commission announced on Saturday night that “Israeli” authorities have postponed the release of the seventh batch of Palestinian prisoners to an indefinite date, according to the WAFA news agency.
The release was originally scheduled for Saturday as part of the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
Hundreds of people and the families of the detainees had gathered from early Saturday morning, braving the cold weather, at the Cultural Palace of Ramallah and the Mahmoud Darwish Museum Square in the city to welcome the prisoners.
According to Anadolu news agency, eyewitnesses reported seeing a high level of “Israeli military activity” around Ofer Military Prison, suggesting the imminent release of the seventh batch of Palestinian prisoners. Several military vehicles, accompanied by bulldozers, were stationed near a gate leading to Beituniya, west of Ramallah. The movements resembled those preceding previous prisoner releases as part of the ceasefire agreement. However, after about an hour and a half, the military vehicles and bulldozers returned inside Ofer Prison, as shown in circulating videos.
Hamas’ Prisoners’ Media Office confirmed that of the 620 prisoners, 151 are serving life or long-term sentences, with 43 set to be released to the West Bank and Al-Quds, 97 to be deported abroad, and 11 from Gaza before October 7, 2023. The remaining 445 prisoners are from Gaza after October 7, 2023, along with 24 women and children.
The Palestinian group considered the delay a “blatant violation of the agreement.”
“While Hamas cooperated with mediators to ensure the success of the swap process, war criminal Netanyahu continues to delay the release of prisoners,” Hamas spokesperson Abdel-Latif al-Qanoua said.
Earlier on Saturday, Hamas released 6 live captives and, on Thursday, handed over the bodies of 4 others. This completes the final batch of live prisoners in the first phase of the swap deal, with only 4 bodies left to be transferred.
If the seventh batch of Palestinian prisoners is released as planned, the total number of Palestinian detainees freed will reach 1,755, including many with life sentences.
The first phase of the ceasefire and prisoner swap agreement began on January 19, consisting of three phases, each lasting 42 days, with negotiations for the next phase to be held before completing the current one.
However, Netanyahu has delayed starting the second phase of negotiations, which was initially scheduled for February 3.
Hamas has accused Netanyahu of sabotaging the ceasefire agreement, saying the occupation is not engaging in negotiations for the second phase of the deal due to end on March 1.
According to the group’s political bureau, 100 Palestinians have been martyred in the first phase, while much of the agreed humanitarian aid was denied entry into Gaza, and the withdrawal from the Netzarim Corridor—the militarised zone dividing Gaza into north and south—was postponed.
It is noteworthy that the agreement required the occupation to allow in 60,000 mobile homes and 200,000 tents into Gaza, but that requirement has not been met. Meanwhile, more than 90 percent of Gazans have been displaced, as large swaths of the enclave have been turned into rubble.
Gaza’s Health Ministry has confirmed 48,319 Palestinian martyrs in the Zionist occupation’s genocidal war on Gaza, while 111,749 people have been wounded. The Government Media Office updated its death toll to at least 61,709, saying thousands of Palestinians missing under the rubble are presumed dead.
