Israel delays Palestinian prisoner release over chaotic ‘scenes of abuse’ at hostage release among hostile crowds

Israeli leaders were outraged and ordered to halt and delay the already ongoing release of the Palestinian prisoners on Thursday in response to the chaos surrounding the release of the Israeli hostages earlier that day.

After a delay of several hours, the mediators and Israel agreed to resume the release at 5 pm, after Israel received assurances that the next releases will not be held amid hostile mobs.

President Isaac Herzog said “the scenes of abuse and terror towards the hostages as they were transferred to the Red Cross were horrifying.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz in response ordered “that the release of the terrorists slated to be released today be delayed until the safe exit of our hostages in the next phases is assured.”

Israel also contacted the Qatari and Egyptian mediators to complain about the way the hostages were released and demanded assurances from them.

Shortly after, "the mediators delivered a commitment that a safe exit will be guaranteed for our hostages who will be released in the next rounds," the Prime Minister's Office stated.

"Israel insists that lessons will be learned and that in the next rounds, there will be extra care in ensuring the safe return of our hostages."

The Israeli and Thai hostages were released from two points on Thursday. The first release was organized by Hamas in Jabaliya, northern Gaza.

Hamas again staged a release ceremony, though less involved than the one last weekend, and paraded IDF soldier Agam Berger on a stage amid a crowd of onlookers before handing her over to the Red Cross.

The second release was organized by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), which held the former hostages Gadi Moses and Arbel Yehud, together with Hamas.

The ceremony held in Khan Younis, outside the ruined home of killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, was apparently planned to be less elaborate than the others, without a central stage and less cameras present.

However, the terror groups apparently didn’t prepare for the massive, hostile crowds of onlookers and quickly lost control over them. When Moses and Yehud were taken out of a van to be paraded toward Red Cross vehicles, hundreds surged forward, shoving and yelling at the visibly frightened Israelis.

It took around a dozen armed and masked terrorists almost half an hour to shove their way through the crowd and to hand over the two Israelis, and later, the five Thai nationals to the Red Cross.

Israeli media outlets reported that the Palestinian prisoners were already on the buses that were to take them to their release points in Judea and Samaria, Egypt and Gaza, respectively, when the transfer was halted. The prisoners were kept on the buses and not returned to their cells.

Kan News cited a Hamas source saying the terror group had contacted the mediators to protest the delay.

In Beitunia, a town in Samaria near Ramallah where some terrorists were to be released, clashes developed between rioters and IDF troops following reports of the delay.

Several rioters threw stones at the soldiers, who responded with crowd-dispersal equipment. Another rioter attempted to set fire to a trash can, possibly planning to throw it toward the soldiers, and was shot and wounded by Israel Defense Forces (IDF) troops.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich quickly announced his support for the delay. "I am strengthening the Prime Minister and calling on him to prevent the release of terrorists from Israeli prisons at least until guarantees are received that the harsh and humiliating images from Gaza and the abuse of our hostages just before their return will not be repeated."

Sports Minister Miki Zohar said, "Those two hours reminded everyone who watched how cruel these terrorists are and how the residents of Gaza support them. And the day after – we must not forget it."