Behind the prisoner-hostage deal
Standing Together has criticised the choice of prisoners exchanged with hostages by the Israeli government on the grounds that many exchanged are Palestinians, mostly under 18 and many of them citizens of Israel, held with no conviction. By including these prisoners in the exchange, Standing Together argues that this “deepens efforts to criminalise Palestinian citizens, gives Hamas more power over the lives of Palestinians in Israel, and sets a dangerous precedent”. It reports that detainees’ lawyers were against the deal. With prisoners who have not faced trial, there is no guarantee the...