Hamas handed over four bodies of dead Israeli hostages to the Red Cross early Thursday morning in exchange for the release of over 600 Palestinians from Israeli jails.
Israel was due to release the Palestinians this past Saturday but refused to over Hamas’s handover ceremonies, which it said were “humiliating.” Hamas gave the four bodies to the Red Cross in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, without a public ceremony.
According to Al Jazeera, a total of 642 Palestinians will be freed by Israel, including 115 who were serving life or long sentences. Of those 115, 97 will be exiled outside of the Palestinian territories.
Israel will release 445 Palestinians who were detained in Gaza during Israel’s genocidal campaign in the Strip following the October 7 attack on southern Israel. The Israeli military has carried out mass arrests in Gaza, and captured Palestinians, including medical workers arrested at hospitals, have faced brutal torture in prison.
The Palestinian Prisoner Society said on Wednesday that another detainee from Gaza died in Israeli prison. Since October 7, 2023, 60 Palestinians have died in Israeli jails, including 39 who were captured in Gaza.
As part of the exchange, Israel will also be releasing 46 women and children from its prisons. The releases are expected to happen throughout the morning. The first bus carrying dozens of Palestinians left Israel’s Ofer Prison and arrived in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah.
The release of the four bodies and the hundreds of Palestinians marks the last exchange under the first phase of the hostage and ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. The future of the ceasefire, which Israel has continuously violated, remains uncertain as the first phase expires on Saturday, and no deal has been reached on the second phase.
Israeli officials have said they want to extend the first phase rather than enter the second phase, which would require a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza under the initial deal. The US has backed the idea of extending the first phase and has made clear it’s willing to support Israel if it restarts its genocidal war.
