Former Israeli Prisoners Urge Netanyahu to Fully Implement Gaza Ceasefire
As families of detainees protest, over 50 ex-prisoners call for the release of all captives, warning against returning to war.
Watan-More than 50 former Israeli prisoners in Gaza have demanded that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fully implement the ceasefire agreement with Hamas and ensure the release of those still detained in the Gaza Strip.
In a letter signed by 56 released detainees, posted on Instagram, they wrote, “We, who have lived through it, know that returning to war threatens the lives of those we left behind.”
The signatories, including Yardin Bibas, whose wife and two children died while in detention in the Gaza Strip, called on Netanyahu to “fully implement the agreement.”
The former detainees stated in their message, “Carry it out without delay or procrastination; every minute in Gaza is hell for those still held there.”
Families of the Prisoners:
Meanwhile, the Families of the Detainees in Gaza called for a protest on Saturday evening to demand the swift release of their loved ones.
On Friday, the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), released a video of their Israeli prisoner, Matan Angrist, stating that the only way to return the detained prisoners to Israel is through a prisoner swap deal and the transition to its second phase. He called on U.S. President Donald Trump to pressure Netanyahu.
After about 15 months of war, a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas began on January 19. The first phase of the agreement lasted six weeks, allowing the return of 33 detainees to Israel, including 8 deceased, while Israel released around 1,800 Palestinian prisoners held in its jails.
Netanyahu Pushes for Ceasefire Extension Amid Rising Tensions
At the end of the first phase, last week, Israel requested to extend it until mid-April, but Hamas insisted on moving to the second phase, which is supposed to end the war.
Israeli estimates indicate that 22 Israeli prisoners in Gaza are still alive, along with the bodies of 35 others.
Netanyahu, supported by U.S. backing, wants to extend the first phase for the maximum possible time to release as many Israeli prisoners as possible without offering any concessions or committing to the military and humanitarian terms set out in the agreement. He has threatened to return to fighting and resume the war on the Gaza Strip.
Israeli radio quoted former Prime Minister Ehud Barak as saying that threatening to return to fighting to bring back the detainees “is illogical and only serves Netanyahu’s interests.”
