Israel will release up to 1,904 Palestinian prisoners and detainees in exchange for 33 hostages held by Hamas in Gaza during the first 42-day phase of a newly approved ceasefire deal. The Israeli government approved the agreement early Saturday after an eight-hour cabinet meeting.
The release includes 737 Palestinians currently in Israeli prisons, including some serving life sentences for murder, and 1,167 Palestinians detained during Israel's ground offensive in Gaza who were not involved in the October 7 Hamas attack.
Israel's Ministry of Justice published Friday evening the list of 735 Palestinian prisoners slated for release in the first phase of the hostage exchange deal.
The list, published on the Justice Ministry's website, represents only the first phase of releases. No prisoners will be released before 4:00 PM Sunday. The Ministry has established a 24-hour online system for public inquiries about the list.
The list includes individuals convicted of serious terror attacks, among them those responsible for several high-profile murders.
Among those slated for release are members of Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the Palestinian Authority's Fatah movement.
Notable prisoners to be released include Iyad Jradat, convicted of involvement in a 2003 terror attack; Mahmoud Atallah, serving a life sentence for murder; and Mahmud Abu Varda, who is serving 48 life sentences for orchestrating multiple attacks.
Among those to be released are prisoners convicted in the murders of Malachi Rosenfeld, the Henkin couple, Ari Fuld, and other attacks. The notable releases include Zakaria Zubeidi, former head of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades in Jenin who escaped from Gilboa Prison in 2021, and Wael Qassem, leader of the Silwan cell responsible for attacks that killed 35 Israelis, including bombings at Moment Cafe and Hebrew University.
The releases include those convicted in attacks at Jerusalem bus lines, the Stage Club bombing, Sharon Mall attack, and Hillel Cafe attack, the murder of Dvir Sorek, and multiple suicide bombings in Jerusalem and other cities during the Second Intifada.
Settlement activist Elchanan Groner stated that "the list is worse than we thought," citing the planned release of terrorists responsible for thousands of attacks, including dozens of severe suicide bombings and infiltrations from the 1990s and Second Intifada.
The full list will be published following final government approval.
The exchange will begin Sunday with the release of three female hostages from the group of 33 humanitarian cases, which includes women, children, elderly, and infirm individuals. The remaining 30 hostages will be released in stages over the 42-day period, with four scheduled for release on January 25, followed by three each week until a final group of 14.
The agreement follows a specific formula: 30 Palestinian prisoners will be released for each living woman, child, or elderly hostage; 110 prisoners for all nine sick hostages; 50 prisoners for each female IDF soldier; and 30 prisoners each for Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, who have been held in Gaza for a decade. Additionally, 47 Palestinians from the 2011 Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange who were later re-arrested will be released.
The Israel Prison Service has announced measures to prevent public celebrations during the prisoner releases, which will not begin before 4 p.m. Sunday, coinciding with the expected return of the first hostages to Israel.
Beyond the 33 hostages included in this phase, Hamas still holds 65 other captives, many of whom are believed to be deceased. Their return would be part of a potential second phase of the deal, which would include discussions of a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.
Times of Israel contributed to this article.
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