Freed Palestinian prisoners welcomed by crowds in West Bank

A bus carrying Palestinian prisoners released as part of the Gaza ceasefire agreement arrived in Ramallah on Saturday, where a jubilant crowd gathered to greet them.

According to an AFP journalist, wearing traditional keffiyeh scarves, the freed detainees were lifted onto the shoulders of supporters and reunited with emotional family members before heading for a brief health checkup. Many in the crowd waved yellow Fatah flags, and one prisoner was seen kissing a baby as he stepped off the bus.

Unlike previous prisoner releases, the detainees were dressed in jackets instead of their usual prison uniforms. Earlier in the day, Israeli public television broadcast images of the prisoners before their release, wearing sweatshirts bearing the prison service logo, a Star of David, and the slogan: "We will not forget and we will not forgive."

The Palestinian Prisoners' Club, an advocacy group, reported that Israel had agreed to release 369 Palestinian inmates in this latest exchange. Their release was secured in return for three Israeli hostages who had been held in Gaza since the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, which sparked the ongoing war.

Israel had warned Hamas that it must release at least three living hostages this weekend or risk a resumption of hostilities. The warning came after Hamas claimed it would temporarily halt prisoner exchanges, citing alleged Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement.