Why it matters:
Israel released 110 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for captives released earlier by Hamas, as part of the third phase of the ceasefire deal that ended Israel's 15-month war on Gaza earlier Thursday after the Israeli government ordered prison authorities to suspend the release of Palestinian prisoners today "until further notice".
After negotiations by mediators, Israel announced that the process of releasing Palestinian prisoners will start on Thursday.
Thursday’s prisoner-for-hostage swap marked the third round of exchanges as a ceasefire deal in Gaza between Israel and Hamas entered its second week.
After the arrival of Palestinian prisoners in Gaza, the video posted on social media shows the arrival of Red Cross buses full of prisoners released from Ofer Prison arriving to crowds of supporters in Betunia, adjacent to the city of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli government has explicitly forbade any celebrations surrounding the release.
The big picture:
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Hamas of '"unimaginable cruelty" during the hostage releases.
In a post on X, the Israeli PM, who is facing arrest warrants over war crimes and crimes against humanity, criticized the way seven captives were released in Khan Younis.
"I view with great severity the shocking scenes during the release of our hostages," he said. "This is yet another proof of the unimaginable cruelty of the Hamas terrorist organization."
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