Israel is transferring the first 477 prisoners to Palestinian territories now that Sgt. Gilad Schalit is back in Israel safe and sound. The Israeli military and Palestinians waiting to greet released prisoners have clashed on the West Bank.
A number Palestinians were injured in clashes with Israeli troops at the Betonia border checkpoint. It has been reported that some relatives and others who came to support the returned inmates began throwing stones at soldiers, who retaliated by deploying tear gas.
As the first released Palestinian prisoners out of almost 500 crossed the border with Egypt and entered Gaza, they were met by thousands of happy people carrying flowers. Relatives have been crying, kissing and hugging their loved ones, who they are seeing for the first time after the many years away from each other.
Ex-prisoners were greeted in the same way in Ramallah on the West Bank, where Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestinian National Authority was also present.
Abbas said he thanked God for the return and safety of the former prisoners, calling them “freedom-fighters and holy warriors for the sake of God and the homeland.”
Meanwhile, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned the released Palestinians that if they return to violence they will be punished. “We will continue to fight terror and every released terrorist who returns to terror will be held accountable,” he said. Around 300 of those freed have been serving life sentences for deadly attacks on Israelis.
On Tuesday morning the transfer of the first group of Palestinian prisoners to be released took off in heavily guarded convoys. Having arrived at Kerem Shalom (a border crossing near the meeting of the Gaza Strip-Israel-Egypt borders) they were taken to Egypt, where authorities there monitored their arrival in Gaza. All those agreed to be released within the first phase of the swap arrived at the Ofer Prison near Ramallah.
The vehicles that left a jail in central Israel carried female inmates, most of whom were to be freed in the West Bank. Egyptian security, under the terms of mediating the deal, accompanied them. All border crossings were declared closed military zones in preparation for the transaction.
Twenty-seven females and 96 males were taken to Ofer prison in the West Bank. Six male prisoners will be released to their homes in Israel. Three will be released from the Megido prison, two from the Ayalon prison, and one from the Katzrin jail in the Golan Heights.
Among people being freed are those who have been imprisoned without trial. Thus, a Ukrainian woman had to spend nine years in an Israeli jail because her husband was charged with terrorism. Her mother could not hold back her emotions when talking to RT.
“It is a miracle that these two countries reached an agreement and I am very happy that my daughter is among the first ones to be freed," she said. "Seeing how many years Irina spent here – it was 12 years, nine of them in prison – I think her love only got stronger. I am sure she is looking forward to meeting us and knows that we love her, that we are hoping for the best.”
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