Hamas releases 3 Israeli captives under Gaza ceasefire deal

Hamas releases 3 Israeli captives under Gaza ceasefire deal

ANKARA
Hamas releases 3 Israeli captives under Gaza ceasefire deal

The Palestinian resistance group Hamas handed over three Israeli captives to the Red Cross on Jan. 19 under the first phase of a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement.

The three captives were handed over by Hamas’ armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, at Saraya Square in central Gaza City, according to a state-run Anadolu Agency reporter.

The Israeli army confirmed that it was notified by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) that the three captives — Romi Gonen, Emily Damari, and Doron Steinbrecher — had been handed over.

The military said that the three female captives are now in the hands of its forces in Gaza after they were handed over by the Red Cross.

According to Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth, the three freed captives are in good health.

A large number of Qassam members and their vehicles gathered in central Gaza City during the handover process, according to an Anadolu reporter.

The Gaza ceasefire agreement took effect at 11.15 a.m. local time (0915GMT) on Jan. 19 after a few hours’ delay due to Israeli accusations for Hamas of delaying the release of a list of captives set to be released. It was originally scheduled to start on 8.30 a.m. local time.

Israel set to release 90 Palestinian prisoners

Israel’s Prison Service also began on Jan. 19 to transfer 90 Palestinian detainees to Ofer Prison near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank to be released under the ceasefire deal, local media said.

Israeli Channel 12 said the 78 prisoners would be released to the West Bank while the other 12 to East Jerusalem.

“They will only be freed after the arrival of the Israeli captives to Israel,” it added.

The list of prisoners to be released includes Khalida Jarrar, a leader in the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), and journalist Bushra al-Tawil, the daughter of Hamas leader Jamal al-Tawil, according to a joint statement by the Palestinian Commission of Detainees’ Affairs, the Palestinian Prisoner Society, and the Prisoners' Media Office.

The list includes 69 female detainees, 20 children, and one young, the statement said, adding that the set-to-be freed prisoners do not include any detainees from Gaza.