Qadura Fares, head of the Palestinian Prisoners Affairs Committee who is responsible for the terrorists held in Israeli prisons, made a rare statement on Sunday amid reported progress in the hostage negotiations.
According to him, in the first phase of the deal, 25 hostages will be released in exchange for the release of 48 terrorists who were released in the Shalit deal and have since been re-imprisoned; about 200 terrorists who were sentenced to life imprisonment; as well as about 1,000 other prisoners - including all the children, women and sick people held in Israeli prisons.
In an interview with the Palestinian news agency Ma'an, Fares claimed that estimates indicate that the actual number of Palestinian prisoners to be released will be much higher, more than 3,000. Israel insisted on including additional Israeli hostages on the list, including wounded soldiers. However, Israel would have to release more terrorists serving life sentences for hostages who do not meet the "humanitarian" category.
On Saturday, a senior political source told Ynet ahead of the senior delegation's departure for Qatar that the discussions are about the release of 33 hostages, according to the list of 34 that was revealed last week - which no longer includes Youssef Ziyadne, whose body and the body of his son were recovered from a tunnel in Gaza.
"We are discussing a list of 33 hostages, all of whom need to return both alive and dead. This is the first stage of the deal," he said. According to him, "The negotiations are about everyone, the living and the dead, and deal with the transition from one stage to the next and how we discuss the second stage, with the understanding that 98 hostages need to be brought home. Today, too, there was a discussion on the key points because this is one of the components of the deal."
While Israel claims that discussions are ongoing on the issue of prisoners to be released, Fares noted that all terrorists who are to be released, except for those sentenced to life, are supposed to return to their homes, whether in Israeli territory, Gaza or the West Bank. The terrorists serving life sentences will probably be deported to Qatar, Egypt or Turkey.
On Saturday, in a conference call with the envoys of outgoing President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided to send a senior delegation to Qatar. The delegation will include Mossad chief David Barnea, Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, Maj. Gen. (res.) Nitzan Alon and the prime minister's political advisor Ofir Falk.
In the meantime, cabinet members are almost completely excluded from the talks on the deal. On Sunday, after U.S. President-elect Trump conveyed a message through his envoy to the Middle East that he wants to see a deal formed by January 20, the date of his inauguration, Minister of National Missions Orit Strook said in an interview: "Trump does not want a terrible deal like the one that is on the table to be under his name. Many soldiers will pay with their lives and what we see now is nothing, all the effort to clean up the Gaza Strip will go to waste. Such a deal is a clear victory and a reward for terrorism."
Yehuda Cohen, the father of kidnapped soldier Nimrod Cohen, said that "Strook's words are shameful, atrocious words. Instead of speaking on behalf of Trump as if he were your friend in the Religious Zionist Party, and instead of continuing to rant about continuing a futile fight at the expense of the lives of IDF soldiers and the suffering of the hostages, including my son, let the minister with the unnecessary office take stock of all the horrific events that have occurred since October 7, 2023 and resign and stand trial".
Sharon Sharabi, brother of hostages Eli Sharabi and the late Yossi Sharabi, told Ynet on Sunday that "these upheavals that we have been experiencing for 15 months cannot be explained in words. What is happening in Doha right now is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to return the hostages, both alive and dead. It is time to make courageous decisions to return as many of our people as possible from there. If we wait a little longer, we will have no one to bring back."
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According to him, the families of the hostages are meeting with parties involved in the negotiations. "Everything that is happening right now, and this uncertainty, does not foreshadow the return of the hostages home. Both Israel and Hamas have learned from each other."
"Both sides understood that a prolonged cease-fire is crucial, but this deal will also return the values of the State of Israel and the hostages home. I have had enough disappointments. Ultimately, after 15 months, this is a colossal failure. We should have paid the price long ago. Perhaps the geopolitical changes are affecting Hamas," he added.