Curated By: Shankhyaneel Sarkar
Last Updated: November 26, 2023, 08:54 IST
West Bank, Palestinian Territories/Tel Aviv, Israel
Maya Regev (right), 21, was released after being taken hostage during the October 7 attack by Hamas. Released Palestinian prisoner Israa Jaabis (left) embraces her mother as she is received by her family in her house in Jerusalem. (Image: Reuters)
Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners embraced their loved ones after being reunited with them following the hostage-prisoner swap between Israel and Hamas.
Palestinian terrorist group Hamas released a second group of 13 Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners on Saturday. The Israeli authorities responded by freeing 39 prisoners who were held in Israeli custody for various offences.
There was a minor hiccup which led to fears that the hostage-for-prisoner exchange deal would fail after Hamas accused Israel of breaching its side of the agreement. The agreement has also established a four-day ceasefire which is already past its midpoint.
Hamas, in a first, freed one of the people snatched during their bloody assault on the Supernova Music Festival in southern Israel. The terrorist group freed 21-year-old Maya Regev, kidnapped by Hamas in their deadly October 7 assault on the desert rave. Hamas, however, continues to hold her brother, Itay, captive.
The delay in the hostage-for-prisoner exchange deal due to Hamas’ displeasure was mediated after the intervention of Qatari and Egyptian mediators and reassurances from Israel.
Following a late-night operation, Red Cross minibuses ferried the hostages late at night through Gaza’s Rafah border crossing with Egypt ahead of their transfer to Israel.
Hamas later said it had “responded positively” to Egyptian and Qatari mediators, after they relayed a promise by Israel to “uphold all the conditions of the accord”.
Israeli officials denied any breach of the terms of the pause.
Emotional reunions were reported by the hostage families forum when nine-year-old hostage Emily Hand and Otah met their parents in Tel Aviv.
“We can’t find the words to describe our emotions after 50 challenging and complicated days,’ Otah’s family said in a statement. His mother and grandmother were also among those freed.
Meanwhile, in West Bank, muted celebrations amid heavy Israeli police presence and a few crackers greeted 39 Palestinian women and children who were released from Israeli prison.
Among those released were 38-year-old Israa Jaabis, sentenced to 11 years in jail for detonating a gas cylinder at a checkpoint in 2015. Jaabis’ famous photo showing her withered fingers and partially burnt face, is regularly used in demonstrations to illustrate the suffering of Palestinian prisoners.
“I’m ashamed to talk about rejoicing when the whole of Palestine is wounded”, Jaabis told journalists in her living room, sitting beside her 13-year-old son.
“I was just waiting for the day I would be released from prison so I could hug my mother like this,” said Rawan Abu Matar, who served eight years for attempting to stab an Israeli soldier.
