The deal, mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the U.S. stipulates that Israel releases 50 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for each soldier released.
Hamas handed over four Israeli captives in exchange for the release of 200 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails on Saturday under the Gaza ceasefire deal, mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the United States.
The latest and second such exchange saw Hamas hand over four women Israeli soldiers—Liri Albag, Karina Ariev, Danielle Gilboa and Naama Levy—in Gaza City’s Palestine Square.
The captives appeared before the public in good condition following 15 months of captivity and were smiling and waving at the crowd before leaving Gaza.
“Despite the unprecedented brutal aggression that targeted every inch of Gaza with its savagery, we preserved the enemy’s prisoners, in adherence to our morals and customs, while the criminal enemy tried to rid itself of them,” Hamas said on its Telegram channel.
Hours later Israel released 200 Palestinian prisoners, including 121 serving life sentences and 79 with long imprisonment.
Of those released, 70 were transported to Egypt, where they will stay temporarily before being exiled to another country.
A total of 16 others were transferred to the Gaza Strip, Palestine’s news agency, Wafa, reported.
The deal, mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the U.S. stipulates that Israel releases 50 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for each woman soldier released.
“Today [Saturday] we force the criminal occupier to open the doors of its prisons to our heroic prisoners,” Hamas added in its statement.
The most recent list of freed Palestinian prisoners included Mohammed Al-Tous, who languished in an Israeli prison for four decades after he was detained by Israeli occupation forces in 1985. Another key name is Raed Al-Saadi, who incarcerated since 1989, making him the longest-serving detainee in the Jenin Governorate.
While Israeli occupation forces are obligated to withdraw from the Netzarim Corridor on the same day, reports have pointed to Israel’s refusal until Hamas releases Arbel Yehud, an Israeli soldier.
A Hamas source has told Al Jazeera that Yehud will be released next Saturday.
The crucial withdrawal from the Netzarim Corridor, which bisects the Gaza Strip, would enable internally displaced Palestinians to return to their homes in the north.
The ceasefire deal came into effect last week following intensified efforts by the mediators to reach an agreement between Hamas and Israel after more than a year of stalemate.
The first exchange took place on January 19, where Israel released 90 Palestinian prisoners—predominantly women and children—from its jails. This came after Hamas handed over three Israeli female captives on the same day.
The deal stipulates that Hamas hand over 33 captives during the first phase, which will last 42 days. The captives include children, those aged above 50, as well as the sick and wounded.
Israel will release 1,890 Palestinians from its jails during the same phase.
Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip has displaced at least 90 percent of the blockaded territory’s population of 2.1 million while causing a humanitarian catastrophe.
Since October 7, 2023, Israel has killed more than 47,200 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
The figure is believed to be an undercount of the actual death toll with thousands missing and still trapped under the rubble—likely 40 percent higher.