The government early Friday approved an agreement to end the war with Hamas, paving the way for the release of hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian terrorists held in Israeli prisons. The Justice Ministry announced that while the full list of prisoners designated for release has been compiled, it has not yet been made available to the public due to technical issues.
Names of several of the most notorious terrorists — often referred to by Hamas as the “four aces” — were removed from the final list. These include senior Fatah figure Marwan Barghouti, Ahmad Saadat, Abbas al-Sayed, and Hassan Salameh. Also excluded were Hakim Awad, who murdered five members of the Fogel family in the West Bank settlement of Itamar in 2011 and is serving five life sentences, and Mahmoud Atallah, a life-term prisoner convicted in the case involving the sexual exploitation of female prison guards.
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Marwan Barghouti, Ahmad Saadat, Abbas al-Sayed
(Photo: Noam Moskowitz, Atta Awisat, Yariv Katz)
Under the decision approved overnight, 250 terrorists serving life sentences will be released out of 270 currently held in Israel. The government’s decision stated that “for reasons relating to the conduct of the state’s foreign relations and the security of the nation, it is necessary to release, from the list of 270 prisoners and detainees held by the Israel Prison Service, 250 prisoners and detainees (hereinafter – the security prisoners).”
In addition, Israel will release 1,700 residents of the Gaza Strip who were not involved in the Hamas-led Oct. 7 massacre and were arrested after that date, as well as 22 minors from Gaza who were not implicated in the attacks and were detained later.
Terrorists serving life sentences who are released as part of the deal will be deported either to Gaza or to foreign countries willing to accept them. Israeli officials have already opened talks with several nations. In previous exchanges, most of those freed were sent to Gaza, Egypt, or Turkey, with a few transferred to Malaysia. According to Israeli estimates, Turkey and Qatar are expected to take in most of those released under the new deal.
Notorious terrorists among those to be released
Iyad Abu al-Rub, a senior Islamic Jihad commander from the Jenin area, was found responsible for a series of deadly suicide bombings, including the 2003 attack in Sde Trumot, the 2004 bombing at the Stage nightclub in Tel Aviv, and the 2005 attack at the Hadera market, as well as numerous foiled plots.
Ibrahim Alikam murdered Ita Tzur and her 12-year-old son Efraim in an ambush near Ramallah in 1996. He was initially sentenced to life in prison, released at a later date, and re-arrested a decade after his first detention.
Bahij Badr, 51, led a Hamas cell in Beit Liqya that carried out multiple bombings, including the attacks at Café Hillel in Jerusalem, a bus stop near Tzrifin, and Har Zion Boulevard in Tel Aviv. He is serving 18 life sentences for murdering 18 Israelis.
Jihad Rum murdered Yuri Gushchin, a teenager from the Pisgat Ze’ev neighborhood of Jerusalem, after kidnapping him three weeks before his scheduled enlistment in the IDF. Gushchin was taken to Ramallah, where he was killed. Rum was sentenced to life plus 20 years in prison.
Hussein Rwadra murdered Israeli soldier Eden Atias in a stabbing attack in Afula.
Nasser and Mahmoud Abu-Srur murdered Shin Bet security coordinator Haim Nahmani and were arrested in January 1993.
Nabil Abu-Khdeir, a resident of Shuafat, murdered his sister, claiming she had collaborated with the Shin Bet. He evaded capture for 17 years, during which he fled to Palestinian Authority territory and worked as a lecturer at Bethlehem University before being arrested and convicted.
Raad Sheikh, a Palestinian police officer, took part in the 2000 lynching in Ramallah, beating Israeli soldier Cpl. Vadim Nurzhitz with an iron bar. He is serving two life sentences.