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Israel’s Ministry of Justice released a list of 250 prisoners on Friday for release in exchange for hostages currently captive in Gaza, as part of a ceasefire agreement with Hamas.
The list excludes the names of several high-profile Palestinian militant leaders regarded as symbols of resistance, whose release has been demanded by Hamas.
Among those Palestinian leaders serving life sentences in Israeli prisons are Marwan Barghouti, Ahmad Saadat, Hassan Salameh, and Abbas al-Sayyed. Barghouti, sentenced to life in 2004 on murder charges and labelled a terrorist by Israel, is sometimes referred to by his supporters as the “Palestinian Mandela.”
Israel and Hamas have finalised the initial phase of a ceasefire and hostage-prisoner exchange agreement regarding Gaza, based on a 20-point plan proposed by former US President Donald Trump.
As per the plan, Israel will release 250 prisoners and approximately 1,700 Gazans detained since the onset of the conflict following Hamas’s attack on October 7, 2023.
In return, Hamas is set to deliver 47 hostages who remain held from the 251 taken during the attack two years prior. One additional hostage’s remains, who has been held in Gaza since 2014, are also expected to be returned.
