Hamas official Ghazi Hamad has told the Reuters news agency that the group is aiming for the release of as many Palestinians held in Israeli prisons as possible, a central point of contention in a possible deal with Israel, whose prime minister has said he will not release “thousands” of imprisoned Palestinians.
“Netanyahu is trying to make everyone believe that he has or will achieve victory to preserve his coalition government,” Hamad told Reuters.
While some Palestinians held in Israeli prisons have planned or carried out violent acts, many are women and minors held on less serious charges.
Others are held through administrative detention laws that rights groups say Israel wields widely to jail Palestinians in the occupied territories without charge or trial. Israel has rounded up and arrested thousands of Palestinians in the occupied territories since the war in Gaza began.
