60 Palestinian women still held in Israeli jails: Palestinian Prisoners Society

By Qais Abu Samra

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) — Israeli authorities continue to hold 60 Palestinian women in jail, with most detained after Oct. 7, a local nongovernmental organization, said on Tuesday.

Speaking to Anadolu, Amal Sarahneh, media officer at the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS), said the Israeli army detained 56 Palestinian women and girls in a major wave of arrests in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem after Oct. 7, so far detaining 3,260 people.

Sarahneh added that Israel had released 33 Palestinian women under a prisoner swap deal with Gaza-based resistance group Hamas over the past four days.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said earlier that Tel Aviv would agree on the release of 50 Palestinian women in additional swaps with Hamas in exchange for the release of Israelis held in Gaza.

Before Oct. 7, the number of Palestinians detained in Israeli jails was around 5,200, including more than 1,000 held in administrative detention without charge or trial.

Tensions have been high across the occupied West Bank since the fighting broke out on Oct. 7 between Palestinian groups and Israel in Gaza.

Nearly 240 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli forces in the West Bank since Oct. 7 in addition to over 2,850 others injured, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar