Released into exile, Palestinian prisoners navigate freedom on Israel’s terms
Freed Palestinian prisoners exiled to Egypt stand in front of the Arab League headquarters in Cairo, Egypt, December 2025. From left to right – Raed Abdul Jalil, Rami Nour, Kamil Abu Hanish, Ammar Al-Zaben
Shimaa Elyoussef reports in +972 on 9 February 2026:
Mohammed Imran spent more than half his life in an Israeli prison. He was never supposed to get out. Now 43, he has been imprisoned for the past 23 years in Ramon and Nafha prisons, serving 13 life terms for allegedly masterminding an ambush in Hebron during the Second Intifada, during which three Islamic Jihad fighters killed 12 Israeli soldiers, Border Police officers, and security guards in the Jewish settlement of Kiryat Arba.
Release seemed inconceivable. But last October, Imran found out he was on the list of prisoners set to be let out as part of the U.S.-brokered Gaza ceasefire agreement. “We thought we were going home to family, companions, and loved ones,” Imran told +972. Instead he was given a choice: accept exile to Egypt with no prospect of returning to Palestine, or remain in prison for the rest of his life. “At first I thought they were playing psychological games, or deliberately trying to ruin the moment,” Imran explained. “But soon enough, the Shin Bet confirmed the ultimatum.”
Imran was given orders not to celebrate his release, raise the Palestinian flag, distribute sweets, or even receive congratulations. “The choice was between exile or death in prison,” he said. “I chose freedom, and with it, I was born again.”
His release came after two years that he describes as the harshest in over two decades behind bars, during which his weight dropped from 95 to 68 kilograms. “After October 7, I was subjected to systematic humiliation, torture, and starvation,” Imran said — conditions that are known to have resulted, directly or indirectly, in the deaths of around 100 Palestinians in Israeli prisons and detention centers since the start of the Gaza war.