Israel Releases 88 Palestinian Prisoners As Part Of First Phase Of Ceasefire Agreement

RAMALLAH, Oct 13 (Bernama-WAFA) -- Israeli forces released 88 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences from Ofer Military Prison, located in the west of Ramallah, as part of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement.

Palestine News and Info Agency (WAFA) reported that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) announced this morning that it had received 20 Israeli hostages in the Gaza Strip in two batches and handed them over to the occupation authorities.

According to the first phase of the plan, all living Israeli hostages in Gaza are to be released in exchange for 250 Palestinian prisoners serving long sentences, including 88 from Ofer Prison and 162 from Ketziot Prison in the Negev. 

They will be transferred to the Gaza Strip before the majority are deported to Egypt.

Simultaneously, around 1,718 detainees from Gaza who were arrested after the war began on Oct 7, 2023, are also set to be released.

Israeli authorities on Monday banned around 100 relatives of detainees scheduled for release on Monday from travelling abroad to receive their loved ones, who are set to be deported outside Palestine as part of the ceasefire deal.

On Sept 9, United States (US) President Donald Trump announced an agreement to implement the first phase of his Middle East peace plan, which he announced on Sept 29.

The plan calls for an end to the war in the Gaza Strip, the withdrawal of the occupation forces from the Strip, humanitarian aid entrance, and the exchange of prisoners.

According to Palestinian Prisoners' Institutions, the number of detainees held inside Israeli jails exceeds 11,000, suffering from catastrophic and dire conditions, including torture, starvation, and systematic medical neglect, which has led to the deaths of several detainees.

The total number of Palestinian detainees sentenced to life imprisonment has reached 350 people, and 40 detainees have been indicted pending life sentences.

There are 53 female prisoners, including three from Gaza, along with two minors.

Approximately 400 child prisoners are held in Ofer and Megiddo prisons, while the number of detainees held without trial has reached approximately 3,380 as of October.

Since Oct 7, 2023, the Israeli forces have committed genocidal crimes in the Gaza Strip, resulting in the killing of more than 67,806 people, the injury of more than 170,000 others, most of them children and women, and a famine that has claimed the lives of 463 Palestinians, including 157 children.

--BERNAMA-WAFA