Round us, a cacophony of sound – the wails of sirens blended with chants, shouts and revving engines.
Ramallah is rarely a quiet metropolis however right this moment, right here in its coronary heart, it was frenetic.
Forward of us, three coaches edged their method via the crowds, accompanied by motorbikes and Palestinian cops, pushing folks out of the way in which.
And on board, peeking out of the home windows, dozens of individuals about to stroll into freedom.
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Freed Palestinian prisoners are greeted in Ramallah
As they left the coaches, the air was punched and cheers rang out.
Every of those males – they have been all males – had been convicted by an Israeli court docket of significant offences, together with tried homicide and terrorism.
And but right here they have been, leaving the coaches, absorbing the acclaim of the West Financial institution’s largest metropolis.
Their freedom is without doubt one of the costs Israel is paying to reclaim its hostages.
Because the coaches got here previous, we met Safia, who was ready for her son Ismail to reach.
He had been convicted of tried homicide; within the eyes of Israelis, her son was a harmful felony however to those that had gathered to welcome these males, they have been political prisoners, lastly launched.
Safia, a frail, quick girl, dropped to her knees to hope because the coach rolled previous, thanking God for her son’s return.
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Safia dropped to her knees to hope as her son, Ismail, arrived again from an Israeli jail
The prisoners’ journey had began on the opposite facet of Ramallah when their coaches have been ushered away from an Israeli jail as a part of a convoy of army automobiles.
We, together with different journalists and a gaggle of curious locals, had been watching the jail from a close-by ridge after we noticed a convoy forming.
That point, there have been no coaches, however among the automobiles got here as much as the ridge to power us to maneuver.
We moved to a different location and noticed tear gasoline getting used on the finish of the road.
After which, far sooner than predicted, we noticed the coaches being pushed alongside the road and away from the jail.
Extra tear gasoline was fired.
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1:04
Celebrations as launched prisoners arrive
It took greater than an hour for the coaches to succeed in the center of Ramallah, for the lads inside to be freed.
They emerged carrying gray tracksuits equipped by the Israeli jail service.
Many appeared exhausted and haggard after lengthy years in jail.
Ahmad Musa, who had served almost half of a 27-year sentence for tried homicide, rolled up his leg to indicate me the place he had been shackled.
He claimed he’d been crushed usually in jail “out of sight of the cameras” and that the beatings had continued till nearly the hour he left.
“Prisoners in Israeli prisons are dealing with the worst conditions,” he mentioned.
“My message to all Palestinian people, wherever they are, including in Gaza, West Bank and abroad, is that you have mastered the art of creating joy, despite the hardship and genocide.”
There are a lot of in Israel who discover this pleasure exhausting to abdomen, and who’re livid that males convicted of involvement in homicide at the moment are free to stroll the streets of the West Financial institution.
However that’s the value Israel has agreed to pay to get again its hostages.
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Palestinian prisoners launched by Israel have been met by enormous crowds within the Ramallah
Equally, there is no such thing as a scarcity of human rights organisations who consider that Israel has repeatedly handed out prolonged sentences on the idea of proof that’s slender and unreliable; that a few of these prisoners should not have been behind bars within the first place.
As ever on this area, it’s desperately troublesome to discover a comfortable medium.
And so the celebrations proceed in Ramallah, whereas the debates rumble on elsewhere.
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Mechanical engineer Mohammad Daraghmeh
Over the street, Mohammad Daraghmeh is watching with a smile.
A mechanical engineer from Jenin, he tells me that the discharge of the prisoners represents “the sweet smell of freedom”.
“Are they heroes to you?” I ask, and he smiles and shrugs as if this can be a ridiculous query.
“Oh yes, they are. But they are more than just heroes – they have given us hope. It is a victory over Israel.”
It’s, he says, a very good day. An excellent day. However what comes subsequent, I’m wondering, for him?
A pause.
“The future of the West Bank is a good question,” says Muhammad. “I think the future is going to be more sadness for us because of the Israeli occupation.”
“Are you scared?” I ask.
“Yes, of course,” comes the reply.
“Of course.”
