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CAIRO | TASS | Israel has released 110 Palestinian prisoners, including 32 serving life sentences, as part of the Gaza Strip ceasefire deal, the Palestinian Information Office for Prisoners’ Affairs announced in a statement on its Telegram channel on Thursday.
“We are glad to announce that the 3rd group of inmates, consisting of 110 Palestinian nationals, was released,” the statement reads. “This group included 32 people serving life sentences, 48 people sentenced to extended prison sentences, as well as 30 juvenile offenders.”
Egypt’s Al-Qahira Al-Ekhbariya television channel reported that at least nine of the previously released prisoners have already returned to the Gaza Strip. No information about whether any of the individuals released as part of the third group would be sent outside Palestinian territory has been divulged.
On Thursday, Palestinian groups active in the Gaza Strip released eight hostages, including three Israeli citizens and five Thai nationals, while Israel pledged to free 110 Palestinians from its prisons. However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later ordered a temporary halt to the release until guarantees were secured for the safe transfer of hostages to the Red Cross in Gaza in subsequent stages of the ceasefire deal.
The agreement to cease fire in Gaza went into effect on January 19. On the same day, the first group of hostages was released, including three Israeli women. In turn, Israel released 90 Palestinian prisoners.
Early on January 25, four Israeli women, who were doing their compulsory service in the Israeli army, were released from captivity in the Gaza Strip, while Israel freed 200 Palestinian prisoners. Among them, 114 arrived in the West Bank, 16 returned to Gaza, and the rest 70 were deported to Egypt.
