Israeli forces have told Palestinian families awaiting the release of detained relatives not to publicly celebrate their return or raise Palestinian flags, as the first stage of a landmark Gaza captive exchange deal began on Monday.
Huge crowds gathered to greet the detainees, who were transported by bus from the Ofer Prison to Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, with Israeli armoured vehicles firing tear gas and rubber bullets at crowds meeting them near the detention facility.
Israeli drones hovered overhead, while Palestinians shared images of leaflets from Israeli forces warning that anyone celebrating the release of the detainees could face arrest.
It comes after 13 Israeli captives held by Hamas were freed, according to the terms of a truce deal, while almost 2,000 Palestinian detainees are set to be released, with 1,718 of the captives from Gaza.
Palestinians have been marred with anxiety awaiting the release of their loved ones, as Israel has previously deported freed detainees to prevent them from returning to their families and homes.
Charlottee Kates, the international coordinator for Samidoun, a Palestinian prisoners' solidarity group, told The New Arab that Israel has a long history of harassing the families of detainees before and after they are freed.
"Unfortunately, this isn't an anomaly. It's a standard practice of the occupation against Palestinians -- after all, this is the same occupation that demolishes the family homes of imprisoned strugglers, and that abducts the parents and siblings of wanted activists," she said.
"This is part of the ongoing Zionist attack on Palestinian humanity. It is the most natural thing in the world to welcome one's loved one home, to celebrate with family and community. But the occupation views this as utterly unacceptable, and has repeatedly stormed family gatherings with tear gas and live weapons in order to block such celebrations," she continued.
Reports on Monday confirmed that over 100 detainees are to be exiled, meaning they are unlikely to ever see many family members again, except in a rare case where Israel has allowed them to leave the occupied territories to reunite abroad.
The family of Muhammed Imran, who was sentenced to 13 life terms in December 2022, said that an Israeli intelligence officer informed them that they should not show any joy upon his release, before raiding their home at night.
"Today’s news was a shock, but we are still waiting. Maybe we’ll get to see him somehow. What matters is that he is released, here or abroad," Imran’s family told Al-Jazeera.
Ahead of the release of the detainees, Israel carried out sweeping raids across homes in the occupied West Bank starting Sunday morning, targeting the families of the detainees set to be released.
Israeli forces descended on homes in Ramallah, Nablus, Tulkarem, and Qalqilya, ransacking homes and harassing family members.
Re-arrest of freed detainees
Israel has previously systematically re-arrested Palestinians freed from Israeli jails.
In May, the Israeli army arrested at least seven Palestinians in the occupied West Bank who had been released in an earlier captive exchange deal.
The Palestinians were taken to undisclosed locations, with no information given to their families on their condition or whereabouts.
Before this, at least 13 other people were re-arrested and placed under administrative attention, which refers to the Israeli practice of holding individuals without charge or trial, and allows for the possibility of indefinite renewal.
Palestinians have long decried the practice, noting that there is no Israeli law preventing authorities from re-arresting detainees once they have been released.
The latest developments come as Palestinians have decried the condition of recently released detainees, who look markedly thinner, in comparison to captives released from Gaza who look healthy despite dire food shortages in the enclave.
According to Kates, there is a significant juxtaposition between the treatment of Palestinians and Israelis being freed.
"The occupation [Israel] rejected the holding of dignified ceremonies for their release [Israeli captives]-- but subjects the Palestinian prisoners in the exchange to torture, beating, starvation, and abuse, in order to punish them for being liberated. All of this highlights exactly why the prisoners' liberation is such a high priority for the Palestinian resistance," she explained.
Earlier on Monday, the parents of one captive released from Gaza, Alon Ohel, told reporters that their son "looks amazing" following his release and their meeting in southern Israel.
Israel’s war on Gaza has killed over 67,000 Palestinians since October and levelled entire neighbourhoods. The war has been determined to be a genocide by leading rights groups, including Amnesty International.