LONDON: Israeli forces conducted raids on several homes of Palestinian prisoners who are expected to be released as part of the captive exchange deal between Israel and Hamas early on Sunday.
Israeli soldiers entered the homes of prisoners due for release, tampered with their belongings, and issued threats to family members, warning them against holding any celebrations, according to the Wafa news agency.
Homes in Nablus, the Balata and Askar Al-Jadid refugee camps, as well as the towns of Salem to the east, Aqraba, and Zeita Jamma’in to the south, were raided. Similar raids were conducted in Hebron and the nearby Deir Samet, where one prisoner from the village is scheduled to be released on Monday, the Wafa added.
Nearly 1,950 Palestinian prisoners and detainees from the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip are set to be freed on Monday in an exchange deal for 48 Israeli captives, 20 of whom are alive.
Late Thursday, the Israeli government approved a ceasefire in Gaza proposed by US President Donald Trump. The deal includes a prisoner and captive swap, an end to hostilities in the Gaza Strip, a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory, and the entry of humanitarian aid.