KHAN YUNIS, Feb 1: Three buses carrying Palestinian prisoners released by Israel as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal arrived to a cheerful crowd in the territory's southern city of Khan Yunis on Saturday.
The prisoners, many wearing grey prison uniforms, were greeted by hundreds of Gazans who gathered around the buses as they approached the city's European Hospital, an AFP journalist reported.
Rabi al-Kharoubi, 40, who came to see their arrival said he felt "indescribable joy" at seeing them freed. "We are proud of them."
"I saw the shock in their eyes as they looked at Rafah and Khan Younis, destroyed, with piles of rubble and streets completely ruined," he added referring to the devastation in southern Gaza after 15 months of war between Hamas and Israel.
The prisoners were to undergo medical checks at the hospital before heading to their homes.
"In blood and spirit, we shall redeem you, prisoner!" chanted some in the crowd as the men left the buses one by one.
Some prisoners stuck their heads out of the windows of the vehicles as they tried to spot relatives or talk to people they knew in the crowd.
One teary-eyed prisoner kissed the palm of his hand before placing it on the bus window while someone on the other side matched the gesture.
Off the bus at last, one emotional prisoner raised his arms to take hold of a small child handed to him through the crowd.
According to the Palestinian Prisoners' Club in Ramallah, 150 of the 183 detainees released on Saturday as part of the truce between Israel and Hamas were to be transferred to Gaza.
"This is a new day of victory for our people. Today, a new group of our heroes is being released, seeing freedom despite the occupation's will," a Hamas official who did not wish to be identified told AFP.
"Among those who arrived in Khan Yunis were 111 detainees arrested by Israel after October 7, 2023, but they have no connection to the Al-Aqsa Flood," he said, using Hamas's name for its attack on Israel that day.
The prisoners were released in exchange for three Israeli hostages freed earlier on Saturday by Hamas, including two who were handed over to the Red Cross in Khan Yunis.
The buses brought the prisoners to the Palestinian territory through the Kerem Shalom crossing.