Qadura Fares, chairman of the Palestinian Prisoners’ Affairs Committee, disclosed in a Sunday interview with the Maan news agency that as part of the ongoing negotiations between Israel and Hamas, the number of prisoners to be released is expected to exceed 3,000.
He explained that the first phase of the agreement would involve the release of 25 Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip in exchange for the release of 48 terrorists previously freed in the Shalit deal and later re-imprisoned. This phase will also include the release of approximately 1,000 additional terrorists, including all women and children held in Israeli prisons, as well as 200 individuals sentenced to life imprisonment.
In the meantime, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed Israel’s senior negotiating team to join the professional echelon in Doha, signaling an intensified push to secure a deal for the release of hostages from their harsh captivity in the Gaza Strip.
The senior team includes the head of the Mossad, the head of the Shin Bet, Maj. Gen. (res.) Nitzan Alon, and political advisor Ofir Falk. The deployment of the expanded team suggests potential progress in the negotiations. This move comes amid conflicting reports about the factors delaying the deal. While there are indications from Israel and the U.S. of Hamas’s opposition, some have pointed to Netanyahu as a potential cause of the delays.
The decision to send Maj. Gen. (res.) Nitzan Alon, despite the strained relationship between him and the prime minister, is seen as an effort to preempt future accusations that Israel is not approaching the negotiations with the necessary seriousness.
According to sources familiar with the details, the current negotiations are focused on a broader deal than previous ones, involving the release of a greater number of hostages and a longer ceasefire. However, it remains uncertain whether the agreements being discussed with Hamas representatives abroad will be acceptable to the group’s leaders in the Gaza Strip.
Qadura Fares also mentioned that most of the terrorists would return to their homes in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and Gaza. However, those sentenced to life imprisonment are expected to be deported to countries like Qatar, Egypt, or Turkey. “This exile is a necessary step to prevent any threats to the lives of the Palestinians being released,” Fares told Ma’an.
In the interview, Fares disclosed that Israel had requested that nine more hostages, including wounded soldiers, be added to the list for the first phase of the deal. In exchange, Israel is expected to release an additional number of terrorists sentenced to life imprisonment. Fares emphasized that these conditions are currently central to the ongoing negotiations between the parties.
