by Mick the Ram

The delicate cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, which came into effect on Sunday 19 January saw the start of the hostage/prison exchange, a major part of the long-awaiting deal.  

The agreement stipulates that for every Israeli hostage released there will be 30 Palestinian prisoners set free from Israeli prisons, a number which will increase to 50 should the hostage be a soldier.

In keeping with that undertaking, following the liberation of three Israeli women who had been held in tunnels beneath Gaza for 15 months, 90 Palestinians gained their freedom.

Those set free included 69 women and 21 teenage boys from the West Bank and Jerusalem, according to Hamas. Most were from Ofer Military prison in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, and were jubilantly welcomed back home by thousands of celebrating Palestinians.

In the first phase of the agreement there will be a 42-day truce in which time it is expected that 33 Hostages will be allowed home, meaning that over 1,700 Palestinians prisoners and detainees will regain their independence.

Waiting hours to greet those released

Crowds had been waiting for hours to greet those in the first batch of released prisoners, waving the flags of both Palestine and Hamas, excitedly anticipating reunions with loved ones, friends, colleagues, or just fellow Palestinians.

One of them, Nawaf Jarabaa, spoke for many when saying: “I’m happy, but not too happy, as my daughter was arrested simply for expressing her ideas,” before adding: “The thing that bothers me the most is that people think that the Israelis have only behaved this way towards us since 7 October, but the truth is that it has always been like this.”

Mostly minor offences

It seems that the vast majority of those released had actually only recently been detained and not yet been to trial, or faced any conviction. The 90 were made up of 76 people from the West Bank with the remaining 14 coming from Jerusalem.

Some of the detainees released included:

Shatha Jarabaa, a 24-year-old, who was arrested over a social media post in which she simply wrote of the “brutality” of Israel’s campaign in Gaza. On her release she expressed her joy saying: “I’m very happy! Thank God I’m outside; they treated me very bad in prison – it was horrible!”

Teenager Ahmad Khsha, had been detained since being arrested in Jenin a year ago. The 18-year-old explained how he was taken into custody just because his brother died during a shoot-out. He claimed that the night before they were set free, guards raided their prison cells and threw tear gas at them. “They tortured us every day.” he said, adding that the women were very badly mistreated.

Bushra al-Tawil, a Palestinian journalist, was jailed in March 2024. She too said how hard it had been in the prison, but also stated that they were always confident that at any moment they would be released.

Leader of liberation group liberated

There was at least one prominent Palestinian amongst the detainees released and that was 62-year-old Khalida Jarrar, who is a leading member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

The group are a secular leftist faction that was involved in attacks against Israel back in the 1970’s, but one which had later scaled back militant activities.

“Indefinitely renewable administrative detention”

Since her arrest in late 2023, she was held under indefinitely renewable administrative detention, a widely criticised practice that Israel uses against Palestinians.

She said upon he release: “There is this double feeling we are living in, on the one hand, this feeling of freedom, that we thank everyone for, and on the other hand, this pain, of losing so many Palestinian martyrs.”

Unbridled joy

As the bus carrying the freed prisoners made its way through the crowded streets, overjoyed Palestinians honked car horns and blasted music in the central Gaza city of Deir al Balah, accompanied by celebratory gunfire.

Children also ran around happy at the sudden feeling of safety… how long that lasts remains to be seen.