Thousands of Palestinians gathered in Ramallah on Monday to await the release of some 2,000 political prisoners and forcibly disappeared people who were taken by Israel from the West Bank, which it occupies, and Gaza, which it has waged war on for two years.

Palestinians welcomed back 96 political prisoners, as well as the vast majority of people Israel detained from Gaza during the war.

This comes as part of an exchange of 20 living and 28 deceased Israeli captives held in Gaza for the nearly 2,000 Palestinian captives.

Of the more than 200 Israeli captives taken by Hamas on October 7, 2023, a total of 114 were released during two captive swaps with Hamas in November 2023 and January 2025, respectively.

They were handed over in exchange for the freedom of a total of 1,240 Palestinians

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