Hamas and Israel Releases 13 Hostages, 39 Palestinians
-
Alaina
- . November 25, 2023
- . Update: November 25, 2023 11:00 am
Hamas released the first batch of 13 hostages it held captive for 49 days, under a 4-day ceasefire and Palestinian prisoners release deal.
The hostages were handed over by Hamas to representatives of the International Red Cross in southern Gaza. They were then taken to the Rafah crossing with Egypt and handed over to Israel. The Gaza-based militant group will release the remaining 37 hostages over the coming three days.
The International Red Cross said none of the released Israeli hostages were in serious condition. This was also confirmed by the IDF after medical tests. The Israeli hostages appeared to be in good physical health, with a preliminary health examination stating that they were all in good physical condition. However, the Wolfson Hospital said some of the women were feeble and exhausted.
Israel Releases Palestinian Prisoners
While the world’s spotlight is on hostages freed by Hamas, it should be noted that Israel has been holding thousands of Palestinians – children, teenagers, young men and women, as well as the elderly – in prison for either throwing stones or attempted murder. Human rights groups say the number of Palestinians held without charge in Israeli jails have surged since the October 7 attack.
As per the deal with Hamas, Israel released 39 Palestinians – 24 women and 15 teenage boys. Israel sees the young Palestinians as a security threat and imprisons them for one or the other reason time and again. At least 6,000 Palestinians are held by Israel on security grounds and many are awaiting trial.
And as Hamas and Israel went through with their first swap deal, Israeli forces raided the homes of two Palestinian prisoners in Jerusalem warning their families against having any press interviews.
Keep Reading
Israel Wants Gaza Cut Off From the World: Erdogan
Geert Wilders is Bad News for Europe and the Environment
Israel Adamant for War
Israel reiterated that it will continue the war will full military force after the humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza. Yoav Gallant, Israeli Defense Minister, said they will not stop until they achieve their goals – eradicating Hamas and returning the hostages to Israel.
“There are 240 hostages and this is something we cannot accept nor tolerate. We have no interest in war, but we must deter our enemies. We cannot return to the reality of 6 October. We were brutally attacked by Hamas, then we were attacked by Hezbollah. We will not tolerate threats directed at our citizens.”
