Key security prisoners Israel to release and keep in Gaza deal

Israel released the names of 250 Palestinian security prisoners it has agreed to free as part of the Gaza ceasefire-hostage deal, while authorities began notifying the families of victims whose killers are set to be released. The list, published the morning after the cabinet approved the US-backed ceasefire agreement, includes members of Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Fatah, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine — groups responsible for numerous deadly terror attacks. However, it does not include several high-profile figures Hamas had demanded, including prominent Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti.

Of the 250 prisoners to be released, 15 will return to East Jerusalem, 100 to the West Bank, and 135 — those convicted of murder or weapons production — will be deported to Gaza or other destinations, according to the government decision published on October 10 and cited by The Times of Israel.

Some final adjustments to the list were made in the morning in a cabinet telephone vote, following negotiations that resulted in the replacement of 11 Fatah-affiliated prisoners with Hamas-linked inmates. Of these, nine are serving life sentences and two are serving shorter terms due to end in June.

In addition to the 250 prisoners, Israel will release 1,722 Gazans detained during the ongoing war who were not involved in the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023. The government said this group includes 22 minors. Of those to be released, 1,411 are currently held by the Israeli Prison Service and 311 by the IDF.

The decision also stated that Israel will return “360 Gazan terrorists’ bodies,” though it did not specify whether any of those individuals took part in the October 7 massacre.

Among the 250 prisoners to be released is Iyad Abu al-Rub, the commander of Palestinian Islamic Jihad in the Jenin area of the West Bank. He oversaw several attacks, including suicide bombings in Shadmot Mechola (June 2003), Tel Aviv (February 2004), and Hadera (2005), which together killed 13 people.

Others set for release include Muhammad Zakarneh, a Fatah operative who planned the 2009 murder of taxi driver Grigory Raginovich, and Muhammad Abu al-Rub, who carried out a fatal stabbing attack in 2017 that killed Reuven Shmerling. Mahmoud Qawasmeh, a senior Hamas member who was freed in the widely covered 2011 Shalit prisoner exchange, deported to Gaza, and later re-arrested during the 2024 Gaza war, will also be among those released.

Israel remains adamant in its refusal to allow several individuals

Despite Hamas’s demands, Israel continues to reject the release of several key figures. Besides Barghouti — the former Tanzim leader serving multiple life sentences for murders committed during the Second Intifada — those not slated for release include Ahmad Sa’adat, secretary-general of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine; Ibrahim Hamed, serving 45 life terms for orchestrating attacks as Hamas’s West Bank commander; Abbas al-Sayed, who planned the 2002 Park Hotel bombing in Netanya that killed 39 Israelis; and Hassan Salameh, serving 48 life sentences for multiple suicide bombings.

Hamas leaders reportedly told mediators earlier this week that “Barghouti’s fate remains absolutely central to these talks,” according to a source quoted by The Times of Israel.

The 66-year-old Barghouti is widely regarded as a potential successor to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, enjoying broad support among Palestinians while maintaining backing for a two-state solution.

The article also cites Hebrew media, which reported earlier that Israel had rejected Hamas’s demand to return the bodies of brothers Yahya and Mohammed Sinwar, who led Hamas before being killed by Israel in October 2024 and May 2025, respectively.

By Nazrin Sadigova