ISRAELI OCCUPIED AND STARVED GAZA, 13 Oct. - (ANA) - Dozens of Palestinians freed from Israeli detention arrived in Gaza on Monday afternoon, as part of the ongoing captive exchange agreement between Hamas and Israel that should see some peace for the war-battered enclave.

 

Their arrival ignited powerful scenes of emotion across Gaza, where crowds had gathered for hours under the autumn sun to welcome them home.

 

From the early morning, hundreds of mothers, fathers, and children waited outside the Nasser hospital in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, holding pictures of their loved ones and Palestinian flags, their faces etched with exhaustion and hope.

 

The buses carried the freed detainees through the Kerem Shalom crossing, where the crowds erupted into cheers and song.

 

Many of them had spent years or even decades in Israeli prisons, and were immediately transferred to the Nasser Hospital for medical examinations after their harrowing experiences in detention.

 

 

Umm Mahmoud Abu Oweida from Jabalia refugee camp, whose 27-year-old son, Mahmoud, was detained during an Israeli raid in May 2024, had been waiting every day for this moment.

 

"It feels like a dream, I have never imagined that I would hug my son once again," she told The New Arab.

 

"They raided the school at night and took the men, and for 17 months, I didn't know if he was alive. They told me today he’s on the list, but I won't believe it until I touch his face."

 

For many families, the joy of reunion was tempered by reminders of loss. Every freed prisoner returned to a homeland almost unrecognisable, neighbourhoods reduced to dust, homes flattened, and loved ones buried under the rubble.

 

"I didn't believe my son would ever come back after eight years," Huda Abu Ali, another, told TNA. "This is the day we waited for, even as we lost everything else to war and destruction."

 

"During the war, the Israeli occupation has not only arrested our sons but also killed our hopes to be reunited once again," she said.

 

Abu Khaled al-Nuwairi's son Khaled, 23, was detained in April 2024 while helping the wounded at Al-Shifa Hospital.

 

"They took him in front of me," he told TNA as his voice trembled. "I lost my wife and four children when our house was bombed. Today, I wish they were here to see this moment; freedom means little when everything else is gone," he said.

 

The ceasefire that allowed the exchange went into effect last Friday, pausing about two years of relentless Israeli bombardment that began in October 2023, killing more than 67,000 people and leaving thousands more still under the rubble.

 

According to Palestinian organisations monitoring prisoners, Israel is expected to release 1,968 detainees as part of the deal, including 250 serving life sentences, 154 deported from the West Bank and Jerusalem, and 1,718 from Gaza who were captured during the latest war.

 

 

It is the largest prisoner swap since the 2011 exchange for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, but now Gaza is a wasteland of shattered buildings, grief, and famine.

 

The Gaza Ministry of Prisoners Affairs welcomed the release, calling it "an important step toward ending the suffering of thousands of Palestinians in Israeli prisons", but urged the international community to continue pressing for the release of all detainees.

 

In a press statement, Hamas's armed wing, the al-Qassam Brigades, hailed the deal as "a victory for the steadfastness of our people", saying Israel "failed to recover its prisoners by force and was forced to negotiate".

 

Despite the jubilation, analysts warned that the deal carries deep political implications.

 

Ramallah-based political expert Esmat Mansour described it as "humanitarian on the surface but political at its core".

 

"Washington aims to redefine Gaza's crisis as a regional security issue, while Hamas views the deal as a way to restore its legitimacy after a year of devastation," he told TNA.

 

"The truce's future depends on Israel's withdrawal and the full entry of humanitarian aid, conditions that remain uncertain."

 

Gaza-based political expert Ahed Ferwana believes that the deportation of more than 150 prisoners under the deal raises serious concerns.

 

"It turns freedom into exile. Many are being sent away from their homes to an unknown fate," Ferwana told TNA.  - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/13 October 2025