Gaza city: The families of Palestinians held in Israeli jails were cautiously optimistic after the announcement of the ceasefire deal.

“We are hopeful, but we watch with caution, fear and anxiety,” the relative of a Palestinian imprisoned in an Israeli jail said.

Wafaa Ghalmi, whose husband Ahed Ghalmi is serving a life sentence plus five years, said: “What matters most to me personally about this deal right now is the ceasefire for the sake of Gaza’s families.

“The prisoner exchange will naturally follow as part of the ceasefire agreement.”

Her 57-year-old husband is accused of leading a Palestinian cell responsible for assassinating then-Israeli tourism minister Rehavam Zeevi in 2001.

Ghalmi said that her daughter Rita, who was born while her husband was in prison, has never met her father.

“If he is released as part of the deal, it will be the first time Rita sits with her father.

“As a family,” she added, “it’s only natural that we would be happy.”

Thousands of detainees

There are currently 10,400 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, according to the Palestinian Prisoners Club. Among them are 600 who are serving life or indefinite sentences.

Before Oct 2023, around 5,000 Palestinians were held in Israeli prisons. This number has more than doubled since then.

Aqsa Mohammed, a 20-year-old from a village near the Palestinian city of Ramallah, was eagerly awaiting news of the swap, hoping to see her father again.

Freed after years in jail in Sept 2023, he was arrested again soon after.

“We barely had time with my father after his first release,” Aqsa said.

“I pray to God that he will be included in the first phase of the ceasefire agreement.”

“The Palestinian Prisoners Club receives constant calls from families asking whether their loved ones are included in the upcoming deal,” said Amani Sarahneh, spokeswoman for the club.

The details of the swap are reminiscent of the most famous prisoner exchange in Israel, when in 2011 Hamas exchanged Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit for 1,027 Palestinian prisoners.

Israel later rearrested approximately 40 of those freed. They are expected to be included again in the new deal.

Many families, for whom such exchanges are the only chance of seeing relatives released, were disappointed during the Shalit exchange when their relatives were not on the list.

Even Faaida Barghouti, the wife of the prisoner serving the longest sentence in Israeli history, said she dared to hope for his release.

Her husband Abdallah Barghouti is serving 67 life sentences, plus 5,200 years for his alleged involvement in several bombings.

No official list

Lists of potential releases have circulated on social media, but Palestinian authorities said they had not received any official inventory of names. This prompted Abdullah Al-Zughari, head of the Prisoners Club, to urge families to “disregard these lists”. Hamas appears to be addressing this issue by involving other Palestinian factions in finalising the agreement, with their representatives in Doha alongside the head of the Palestinian Prisoners Affairs Authority.

Published in Dawn, January 16th, 2025