Israel releases four Lebanese prisoners in swap tied to missing Jewish remains
Israel freed four Lebanese prisoners via the ICRC on Friday as part of a US-mediated deal; Lebanon will search for remains of Jewish citizens missing since its civil war.
Four Lebanese prisoners held in Israel were released on Friday and handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) at the Naqoura border crossing, as part of a bilateral agreement between Israel and Lebanon. The release follows the transfer of a fifth detainee, Malek Ghazi, on Thursday.
The deal, brokered by the United States, links the release of five civilian detainees to Lebanon's commitment to assist in locating the bodies of Jewish Lebanese leaders who disappeared during the country's civil war in the 1980s. Israeli officials have said those individuals were abducted and killed by terrorist organisations.
Relatives of the released prisoners gathered near Tyre in southern Lebanon to await their return. Mahmoud Ayash, whose brother Hussein was among those freed, said his brother had called from the border crossing to confirm his release. "I hope all our prisoners in Israeli prisons will be released and for all Lebanese citizens to be liberated," he said.
The ICRC confirmed that the remaining prisoners had been transferred to its custody on Friday. The organisation also reiterated its call for access to other detainees held in Israel, noting that it has been denied such access since October 2023. "Many families in Lebanon are still waiting for answers about the fate of loved ones who may be detained, deceased or otherwise unaccounted for," the ICRC said in a statement.
Dozens of Lebanese nationals, including civilians and Hezbollah militants captured during recent fighting in southern Lebanon, are believed to remain in Israeli detention.
The prisoner release comes amid ongoing, rare direct negotiations between Israel and Lebanon, which do not have formal diplomatic relations. The talks began after the outbreak of the latest conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in March. A US-mediated framework agreement signed in June calls for Israeli withdrawal from occupied southern Lebanese territory in exchange for the disarmament of Hezbollah, but implementation has stalled. Hezbollah has refused to surrender its weapons north of the Litani River, while Israel insists on full disarmament before any pullout.
Further negotiations are expected in Rome later this month.