Celebrations in Gaza as the latest group of freed prisoners arrive

There were celebrations in Khan Younis on Thursday morning as buses carrying hundreds of freed Palestinian prisoners arrived in the Gaza Strip city.

They were welcomed by family and friends, as one man stepped off the bus, threw down his Israeli prison service t-shirt, and stamped on it.

Among the former detainees were hundreds arrested in the enclave on suspicion of militancy following the 7 October 2023 attack on southern Israel, and held for months without charge.

They include 445 men, 21 teenagers, and one woman, according to lists shared by Palestinian officials that did not specify their ages.

Only around 50 Palestinians were released into the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem in this round.

Their release came after Hamas, earlier handed over the bodies of four Israeli hostages to the Red Cross.

Israel had delayed the handover of the over 600 prisoners since Saturday in protest against what it described as the cruel treatment of hostages during their handover by the militant group.

Hamas has been sharply criticised, including by the United Nations, for displaying hostages and coffins carrying hostage remains on a stage in front of large crowds in Gaza before handing them over.

The militant group called the weekend delay a “serious violation” of the ceasefire and said talks on a second phase were not possible until the prisoners were freed.

The latest handovers completes both sides’ obligations under the first phase of the fragile truce which ends this week.

The fate of the second phase, which aims to end the war, remains unclear.