Israel Receives 4 Hostages And Releases 200 Palestinian Detainees
SMA NEWS – GAZA
The Palestinian Hamas movement, on Saturday handed over four Israeli hostages in their military uniform, as part of the second batch of the exchange deal.
The Israeli army announced that it had received the four female soldiers from the Red Cross, and said that they had met with their families and would undergo an initial medical evaluation.
In turn, Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari said: “The army is working to return all the kidnapped people, living and dead, and we want confirmations from Hamas about the status of hostage Ariel Yehud.”
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: “Today, Israel received four female soldiers kidnapped from Hamas movement, and in return it will release security prisoners according to the agreed upon formula.”
He added, “Under the agreement, Israel will not allow Gazans to cross into the northern Gaza Strip until the release of citizen Erbil Yehud, who was supposed to be released today, is arranged.”
Reuters quoted a leader in the Hamas movement as saying that the movement informed the mediators that the Israeli citizen detained in the Gaza Strip, Erbil Yehud, will be released next Saturday.
On the other hand, the Israeli Prison Service announced that it had released 200 Palestinian detainees, including those sentenced to life sentences.
According to the Israeli Prison Service, the detainees will be divided into two groups. The first will be released from “Ofer” prison in the West Bank, and the second will be released from “Katsaot” prison in the south. They will be released at the Kerem Shalom crossing, and both operations will be in coordination with the Red Cross, according to the reporter. .
On Saturday, Israel released 200 Palestinian detainees in its prisons in exchange for the four female soldiers, as part of an exchange deal between Hamas and Israel, according to what Palestinian sources confirmed to Agence France-Presse.
