On Wednesday, Hamas prisoners minister, Saleh Arouri, stated that as a follow up to the prisoner swap deal initiated last month, approximately ten female Palestinian detainees are going to be released within weeks, the Palestinian news agency, Ma’an reported. Arouri said that the release of the ten detainees would be completed in the next two weeks. He also stated that the negotiations regarding the deal were nearly over.
Hamas spokesman, Fawzi Barhoum, stated last month that Egypt had guaranteed to free the remaining nine female prisoners.
In a previous statement, Hamas said that the deal includes all the female detainees, 27 of whom were freed in the first phase.
It is worth mentioning that in the second phase of the swap, Israel is going to free 550 prisoners.
The first phase was implemented last month, and the second will be accomplished in weeks. The deal includes releasing over one thousand Palestinian detainees in return for freeing the captured Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit.
Before the deal, there were approximately 6,000 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails including 36 women.
