Deported Palestinians Arrive
in Exile
Forty Palestinians freed by Israel under a prisoner swap deal
with Hamas but deemed to be too dangerous by that country to
be allowed to return to Palestine have arrived in Qatar,
Turkey, Jordan and Syria.
The prisoners were released as part of an exchange on Tuesday
that involved the release of 477 Palestinian prisoners for the
freeing of Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier who was captured
by Hamas more than five years ago.
A total of 1,027 Palestinians will be released as part of the
swap, the initiation of which led to widespread celebrations
in both Palestine and Israel.
Of the 40 prisoners sent into exile, 15 went to Damascus,
Syria, 11 to Ankara, Turkey, one to Amman, Jordan and the rest
to Qatar.
"No words can describe my feelings," said Mohammed Wael, who
was to serve a sentence of more than 1,600 years for his
involvement in suicide attacks, after his arrival in Doha, the
Qatari capital.
"It’s a historic moment. Not returning home leaves a scar, but
we consider all Arab countries as our second home. As long as
there are prisoners in Israel, the mujahideen will always try
to free them."
On her arrival in Amman, Ahlam Tamimi, a former TV reporter
who was serving 16 life sentences for assisting suicide
attacks, said: "Allah has chosen soldiers for him on this
land, and they are the soldiers of the al-Qassam brigades
[Hamas’ military wing]."
US Concern
The US, meanwhile, expressed "concerns" on Tuesday regarding
the release of some of the 477 prisoners freed by Israel in
the first phase of the prisoner exchange.
"We have looked at some of these individuals and we’ve
communicated our position … to the Israeli government," Mark
Toner, a spokesman for the US state department, said. He
declined to elaborate on the nature of those concerns.
He said that the US respected
release the prisoners, but a
"as a matter of principle,
individuals who have been
Americans".
Israel’s "sovereign decision" to
subsequent statement said that
the US opposes the release of
convicted of crimes against
Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, saluted the
release of Shalit, saying he had been held for "far too long".
The Afghan Taliban also released a statement in response to
the prisoner exchange, terming it "the triumph of the will of
the Muslim Palestinian nation" and "one of the heaviest blows"
to Israel.
Palestinian Celebrations
In Palestine, hundreds of thousands of people celebrated the
homecoming of the prisoners.
Hamas, which negotiated the exchange, organised a celebration
in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday that turned into a show of
strength for the Palestinian resistance group that governs the
territory and its rival Fatah party.
The joyous crowd crammed into a sandy plot of land, where a
huge stage was set up, decorated with a mural depicting the
capture of Shalit at an army base near the Gaza border.
Ismail Haniyeh, a senior Hamas official, addressed the crowd
that Hamas said numbered more than 200,000, praising the
kidnap of Shalit as a positive operation that had won the
freedom of hundreds of Palestinians.
"Some described Shalit’s captivity as a worthless adventure,
but today they are proven wrong," he said
"The people want a new Gilad!" the crowd chanted, suggesting
the abductions of Israeli soldiers would mean freedom for
thousands more Palestinians imprisoned in Israel.
More than 5,000 Palestinians are in Israeli prisons – some for
taking up arms against Israel’s illegal occupation of
Palestinian lands, others on what rights groups call
questionable charges.
In the West Bank, President Mahmoud Abbas addressed a crowd of
several thousands – praising the released prisoners as
"freedom fighters".
Abbas shared a stage with three Hamas leaders in a display of
national unity.
At one point, the four men raised clasped hands in triumph.
Friends and family members wept tears of joy for the released
prisoners whom Israel considers "terrorists", but whom they
regard as "freedom fighters".
‘Indescribable Joy’
Raed Abu Lebdeh, who spent 13 years in prison, was overcome as
he embraced his 13-year-old daughter Miriam for the first
time.
"It’s an indescribable joy to see my children," he said,
holding his weeping child to his chest.
"I feel as though I was born today, it’s the very first time
that I’ve seen my father and been able to hug him," she said.
Suhair al-Ghul, whose husband Omar was sentenced to life in
prison, arrived at Rafah with her two sons, both armed and
wearing the uniform of the al-Qassam brigades.
"He spent 25 years in prison. He left behind his children and
he’s returning to find 18 grandchildren," she said.
Among those arriving in Gaza were prisoners who grew up in the
West Bank, but were being deported to Gaza.
Sobhia Jundiya of the West Bank town of Bethlehem travelled to
Egypt with her husband to catch a brief glimpse of their 28year-old son, Ibrahim, who was being released after 10 years.
"It’s better he be in Gaza even if I can’t see him. It’s
better than prison in Israel," she said.
"I hope to see him for a few minutes," she said, beginning to
cry. "This is the day I have been dreaming of for 10 years. I
haven’t touched his hand in 10 years."
In the end, the Jundiyas were unable to see him because the
prisoners’ convoy did not stop during its brief swing through
Egypt.
The couple will try to go to Gaza, but it is difficult for
Palestinians living in the West Bank to obtain such permission
from Israel or Egypt.
Israel prevents most movement between the West Bank and Gaza,
and restricts movement between cities and towns in the West
Bank.
Shalit’s Hope
Gilad Shalit was handed over to Egyptian officials early on
Tuesday at the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt,
and was then taken by Israeli officials to the Tel Nof air
base.
In an interview with Egyptian television at Rafah, Shalit said
that he hoped the deal that allowed for his release would help
Israelis and Palestinians achieve peace.
"I will be very happy if all Palestinian prisoners are freed
so they can go back to their families […] I hope this deal
could help reach peace between Israelis and the Palestinians
and strengthen co-operation," he said.
"Gilad feels well, he suffers a few injuries because of
inadequate treatment – the result of shrapnel and also medical
conditions related to lack of exposure to sunlight," said Noam
Shalit, Gilad’s father.
Palestinians have long argued that no peace agreement could be
reached without the release of all Palestinians held in
Israeli prisons.
Hamas reached a deal with Israel last week for the release
1,027 prisoners in exchange for Shalit, who was captured in
2006 and has since been held in the Gaza Strip. The
Palestinian prisoners will be released in two phases.
(Al Jazeera and Agencies)