Thirty-two of the freed prisoners from the occupied West Bank were handed over to the International Red Cross from the Ofer Prison facility near Ramallah, in line with the terms of the Jan. 19 truce.
Hundreds of Palestinians gathered near the Ramallah Cultural Palace to welcome the freed prisoners, waving Palestinian flags and chanting in support of the resistance and Gaza. Despite warnings, the crowd gathered to receive the prisoners, who raised victory signs in defiance of Israeli orders. Many of the released prisoners appeared in poor health, with some barely able to walk. They were taken to hospitals in Ramallah for medical checks and treatment.
Commenting on the freed prisoners’ poor health, Hamas said it confirmed “the brutality” of what Palestinians endure in Israeli jails. Hamas described these violations as “war crimes and crimes against humanity that require immediate intervention by the international community, the UN and the rights’ group.”
Meanwhile, a six-nation Arab ministerial meeting in Cairo on Saturday firmly rejected displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, and reiterated the call for the implementation of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The meeting, held at Egypt’s invitation and attended by representatives from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Jordan, Palestine, and the Arab League, issued a joint statement stressing the importance of working toward a just and lasting peace in the Middle East.
The statement also expressed support for collaboration with the administration of US President Donald Trump in efforts to achieve a comprehensive peace in the region, based on the two-state solution.
The participating countries voiced their strong opposition to any attempts to infringe on the inalienable rights of Palestinians. This includes settlement activities, forced expulsions, house demolitions, land annexations, or any measures encouraging the displacement or uprooting of Palestinians from their land. The six nations called on the international community, particularly global powers and the UN Security Council, to take immediate action toward implementing the two-state solution.
This meeting comes in the wake of repeated statements from Trump suggesting to “clean out” Gaza and resettle Palestinians to Egypt and Jordan, describing the enclave as a “demolition site.”
The two countries, however, vehemently rejected any call for the displacement or relocation of Palestinians from their land. Trump’s proposal came after a ceasefire agreement took effect in Gaza on Jan. 19, suspending the Israeli war, that has killed more than 47,400 Palestinians, most of them women and children, since a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023. The relentless Israeli attacks have reduced the enclave to a wasteland of ruins and rubble. Trump’s proposal has received widespread condemnation, with critics calling it “ethnic cleansing” and a “war crime.” Many countries in the Muslim and Arab world as well as European nations such as France have firmly rejected the idea.
