From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, November 28, 2023
Israel okays list of 50 female Palestinian prisoners who may be released to extend truce
Tal Schneider is a Political Correspondent at The Times of Israel
The government approved a list this evening of 50 female Palestinian prisoners who are marked for potential early release as part of an agreement to extend a temporary truce with Hamas in Gaza and secure the release of nearly 20 more Israelis held hostage by the Palestinian terror group since October 7.
Half of the women on the list are citizens of Israel arrested in October or November for incitement to terror and supporting terror. Among the 25 Israeli citizens on the list, one woman from Kafr Qasim in central Israel is serving a 16-year sentence for attempted murder after she stabbed a woman in Rosh Ha’ayin in 2016 in a terror attack.
The Prime Minister’s Office said in a brief statement tonight that the government okayed the list “should additional Israeli hostages be released.”
The additional names brings to 350 the number of Palestinian prisoners selected for potential early release as part of the agreement. Israel has already released 150 Palestinian prisoners, mainly female and underaged males, as of Monday.
Since Friday, Hamas has freed 50 Israelis hostages, with 11 released earlier Monday on the fourth day of the initial four-day truce under which Israel agreed to halt its military operation in Gaza and release three Palestinian security prisoners for each of the 50 Israeli hostages. The agreement was set to expire tomorrow.
The truce will now extend by two days, Qatar and the US confirmed earlier, and should see the release of about 10 more Israeli hostages per additional truce day.
As a result of parallel negotiations led by Qatar, Hamas also released 17 Thais, one Filipino and one dual Russian-Israeli national.
