Protests inside Palestine demanding the release of the old 48 Palestinian prisoners before the Oslo Accords. (Al Jazeera)

JERUSALEM – The inclusion of 48 Palestinian prisoners and detainees arrested after the seventh of last October, as part of the stages of the exchange deal between Hamas and Israel, brought to the fore the demand for the liberation of old prisoners from inside Palestine within the comprehensive deal.

This comes amid controversy and warnings among the political, partisan and human rights activists of the 48 Palestinians, fearing the judicial and legal repercussions that may lead to the revocation of citizenship and the withdrawal of citizenship from the detainees if they are included in the deal, knowing that they have not been convicted in court or indictments filed against them.

Israel arrests in its prisons 46 of the 48 Palestinian girls who hold Israeli citizenship, who were arrested after October <> for allegedly identifying with Hamas and inciting "terrorism" on social networks, where the head of the Arab Higher Follow-up Committee, Muhammad Baraka, urged in a statement the families of the detainees to obtain legal advice to understand the legal and personal repercussions if the detainees are included in the exchange deal.

In the judicial context, the director of the human rights center "Adalah", lawyer Hassan Jabarin, warned of the danger and repercussions of including female detainees from Arab towns inside the country who have not been indicted against them, as part of the exchange deal, pointing out that the citizenship law gives the Israeli Ministry of Interior the possibility to withdraw citizenship and revoke the nationality of female detainees, or to prosecute and prevent them from education and travel and impose house arrest on them in the future.

Launching a national campaign calling for the release of prisoner Walid Daqqa, who has been detained in Israeli prisons for 38 years (Al Jazeera)

Ethical and humanitarian standards

Commenting on the exchange deal involving 48 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, Sanaa Salameh, wife of prisoner Walid Daqqa (62 years old) from the town of Baqa al-Gharbia in the Palestinian interior, said that "any exchange deal must be based on legal, moral and humanitarian standards, as there are cubs, women, sick and elderly prisoners in Israeli families and prisons, as well as old prisoners who spent decades in captivity, and the deals must include them all."

Salameh explained in her speech to Al Jazeera Net that without these standards there is no value and meaning of any deal, noting that the circumstances and conditions that arose after the seventh of October / October confirm that it is time for a comprehensive deal to free all old prisoners and owners of high sentences from inside Palestine, Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

The same spokeswoman believes that the Palestinian factions, Hamas and the Qatari mediator should take into account these criteria and reach comprehensive exchange deals, even if they are phased and ultimately lead to the whitewashing of Israeli prisons of Palestinian and Arab prisoners.

The wife of prisoner Walid Daqqa – who has been detained in Israeli prisons for more than 38 years and is living a slow death due to policies of deliberate medical negligence – called on the Palestinian negotiator and the Qatari mediator to include prisoners inside Palestine, old prisoners, the sick and the elderly within the exchange deal, provided that they are at the top of the list of those released after the whitewashing of Israeli prisons of prisoners and cubs.

Salameh condemned the Israeli practices of abuse of prisoners and escalation against them in prison since the seventh of October, isolating them from the outside world, depriving them of medical treatment, family visits and food, withdrawing their achievements and preventing them from meeting with lawyers, noting that these practices are a slow execution of prisoners, and therefore the exchange deal is to free them and bring them back to life.

Sanaa Salameh, wife of prisoner Walid Daqqa with her daughter during events demanding his liberation (Al Jazeera)

Deal Involving Palestinian Geography

The same argument was adopted by writer and political analyst Amir Makhoul, who believes that the circumstances that occurred and the developments after the seventh of October / October suggest that the exchange deals must include all Palestinian geography, pointing out that the inclusion of 48 Palestinian prisoners and detainees in the stages of the exchange deal is an indication of this.

Makhoul, a prisoner released, in his interview with Al Jazeera Net, expressed his understanding of the concerns expressed by the families of prisoners and detainees from inside Palestine and warnings to the Higher Follow-up Committee and human rights associations and institutions from the inclusion of detainees within the deal, from the perspective of the legal concept and citizenship, and the possibility of withdrawing Israeli citizenship from those covered by the deal.

He pointed out that throughout the history of the prisoners' movement, deals covered all Palestinian geography, and were carried out according to seniority criteria and the years of rule, and everything else is subject to the level and personal decision of the families of prisoners and prisoners.

But in light of the developments, developments and circumstances that have arisen, Makhoul said, "Indications suggest the possibility of reaching a comprehensive deal that gives priority to sick prisoners, the elderly, prisoners of the interior who are in pre-Oslo families, and old prisoners and those with high sentences until the prisons are whitened, and this is up to the Palestinian negotiator."

In the case of controversy inside Palestine over the inclusion of 48 Palestinian detainees in the stages of the exchange deal, Makhoul pointed out that the fears stem mainly from the Israeli intention, represented in the prosecution and prohibition of education, the possibility of Israel withdrawing citizenship and citizenship, incitement from the right, the escalation of hostility, and the attempt to throw the 48 Palestinians into the trench of identification with Hamas and accusing them of supporting terrorism.

Writer and political analyst Amir Makhoul believes that the controversy regarding the old prisoners is due to the premeditated intention of Israel (Al Jazeera)

Future pursuits

For his part, lawyer Abed Jaber, who represents 15 of the 48 Palestinians arrested after October <> for allegedly identifying with Hamas and inciting "terrorism" through social networks, reviewed the judicial aspect from the point of view of Israeli law and the legal repercussions that could affect those who are freed from detainees under the exchange deal with Hamas.

Jaber explained to Al Jazeera Net that the families of the detained girls find themselves between the fire of families in Israeli prisons in particular the conditions of war and the state of emergency, and fears of liberation under the deal with Hamas, the vast majority of families want to return to their daughters, and free from prisons despite fears of repercussions and future prosecutions.

Lawyer Jaber understands these concerns of the families and the warnings to human rights defenders, the follow-up committee, and political and partisan actors of the prosecution that may be subjected to those included in the deal, as the path of withdrawing citizenship and citizenship does not exclude even those who remained in detention and trial before the Israeli judiciary.

Lawyer Jaber attributed these estimates to the Israeli authorities' persistence after the events of October 2016 to the use and use of the "anti-terrorism" law in force since 48, pointing out that the Israeli threat to withdraw the citizenship and citizenship of <> Palestinians escalated even before talking about any deal, and before the deal included any Arab detainee with Israeli citizenship.

Lawyer Jaber explained that the Israeli authorities apply double standards when they use the "anti-terrorism" law, as they use it only against Arab citizens, while refraining from applying it to many Jews who carried out attacks on Arab citizens holding Israeli citizenship, and continued to incite them bloodily through social networks, to the extent that some of them demanded their expulsion and deportation.

Source : Al Jazeera