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Bus Carrying Freed Palestinian Prisoners Arrives in Ramallah

A cheering crowd hoisted freed Palestinian prisoners onto their shoulders after they arrived in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah - AFP
A cheering crowd hoisted freed Palestinian prisoners onto their shoulders after they arrived in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah - AFP
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Bus Carrying Freed Palestinian Prisoners Arrives in Ramallah

A cheering crowd hoisted freed Palestinian prisoners onto their shoulders after they arrived in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah - AFP
A cheering crowd hoisted freed Palestinian prisoners onto their shoulders after they arrived in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah - AFP

A bus carrying a group of Palestinian prisoners released Saturday by Israel under the Gaza ceasefire deal arrived to a cheering crowd in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, according to an AFP journalist.

Wearing traditional keffiyeh scarves, the freed prisoners were hoisted onto the crowd's shoulders. They hugged relatives before heading to a quick health checkup, the journalist reported.

Many in the crowd waved yellow flags of the Fatah movement which dominates the Palestinian Authority, while one prisoner kissed a baby as soon as he stepped off the bus.

The Israeli Prison Service confirmed it had freed 369 prisoners from the Ofer and Kziot prisons near Ramallah and Gaza respectively, after transferring them "from several prisons across the country".

Among those released in Ramallah Saturday was Amir Abu Radaha, who had spent almost 32 years in jail.

"I've returned to my family and I've returned anew, born again. Today is a new birthday", he told AFP from their home in the Al-Amari refugee camp near Ramallah.

He had been charged with intentionally causing death and being a member of an illegal organization, according to Israel's justice ministry records.

Abu Radaha said that during the time he'd spent in jail no period had been as hard as the 15 months while war had raged in Gaza.

His sister expressed joy after a sleepless night.

"I kept thinking about whether Amir would be released this time or not", she told AFP.

Unlike previous releases, the prisoners wore jackets rather than openly displaying their prison garb.

Earlier Saturday, images broadcast on Israeli public television showed Palestinian prisoners ahead of their release wearing sweatshirts featuring the prison service logo, a Star of David, and the slogan: "We do not forget and we do not forgive."

In a statement, Hamas condemned the Arabic slogan on the prisoners' sweatshirts, calling it "racist" and a "flagrant violation of humanitarian laws".

Earlier Saturday, during the release of three Israeli hostages in Khan Yunis, militants forced the captives to address onlookers in Hebrew in a choreographed release where signs carried messages in Hebrew, Arabic and English.

Elior Levy, a commentator on Israel's public broadcaster, criticized the prison service's use of the uniforms as "stupid and infantile".

"This very idiotic act puts Israel in the same line as Hamas' grotesque gestures in releasing the hostages," he wrote on X.

The Palestinian Prisoners' Club advocacy group had said Israel was to release 369 inmates in the latest exchange.

The inmates were freed in exchange for three Israelis held hostage in Gaza. It was the latest such swap under a January 19 ceasefire deal that ended more than 15 months of war ignited by Hamas's unprecedented attack against Israel on October 7, 2023.

Israel had warned Hamas that it must free three living hostages this weekend or face a resumption of the war, after the group said it would pause releases over what it described as Israeli violations of the Gaza truce.

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Arab World

Türkiye Calls Israel’s Recognition of Somaliland ‘Illegitimate’

This handout photograph taken and released by the Turkish presidential press service on December 30, 2025, shows Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (L) shaking hands before their meeting in Istanbul. (Photo by Handout / Turkish Presidential Press Service / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released by the Turkish presidential press service on December 30, 2025, shows Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (L) shaking hands before their meeting in Istanbul. (Photo by Handout / Turkish Presidential Press Service / AFP)
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Türkiye Calls Israel’s Recognition of Somaliland ‘Illegitimate’

This handout photograph taken and released by the Turkish presidential press service on December 30, 2025, shows Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (L) shaking hands before their meeting in Istanbul. (Photo by Handout / Turkish Presidential Press Service / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released by the Turkish presidential press service on December 30, 2025, shows Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (L) shaking hands before their meeting in Istanbul. (Photo by Handout / Turkish Presidential Press Service / AFP)

Türkiye’s president on Tuesday called Israel's recognition of Somaliland "illegitimate and unacceptable" as he hosted a visit by his Somali counterpart.

"Preserving the unity and integrity of Somalia in all circumstances holds special importance in our view. Israel's decision to recognize Somaliland is illegitimate and unacceptable," Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a press conference alongside Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.

Israel sparked criticism last Friday when it said it was officially recognizing Somaliland -- a breakaway territory in Somalia's north.

The declaration was a first for the territory, which in 1991 had unilaterally declared secession from Somalia.

Israel's move has drawn widespread criticism from the African Union, Egypt and the European Union, which insist on war-torn Somalia's sovereignty.

Türkiye has frequently clashed with Israel over a range of issues, especially over the conflict in Gaza and Israeli obstruction of aid to the Palestinian territory.

Mohamud said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's "aggressive position, which also includes Somalia, is unacceptable".

He called Netanyahu's Somaliland declaration "a violation of international law" and "the start of insecurity and instability, especially for Somalia and the African region".

Arab World

10 Countries Warn of ‘Catastrophic’ Gaza Situation

Palestinians stand next to a tent set up on the rubble of buildings destroyed during Israeli air and ground operations in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, in Gaza City, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians stand next to a tent set up on the rubble of buildings destroyed during Israeli air and ground operations in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, in Gaza City, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025. (AP)
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10 Countries Warn of ‘Catastrophic’ Gaza Situation

Palestinians stand next to a tent set up on the rubble of buildings destroyed during Israeli air and ground operations in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, in Gaza City, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians stand next to a tent set up on the rubble of buildings destroyed during Israeli air and ground operations in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, in Gaza City, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025. (AP)

The foreign ministers of 10 nations on Tuesday expressed "serious concerns" about a "renewed deterioration of the humanitarian situation" in Gaza, saying the situation was "catastrophic". 

"As winter draws in, civilians in Gaza are facing appalling conditions with heavy rainfall and temperatures dropping," the ministers of Britain, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Japan, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland said in a joint statement released by the UK's Foreign Office. 

"1.3 million people still require urgent shelter support. More than half of health facilities are only partially functional and face shortages of essential medical equipment and supplies. The total collapse of sanitation infrastructure has left 740,000 people vulnerable to toxic flooding," the statement added. 

The ministers said they welcomed the progress that had been made to end the bloodshed in Gaza and secure the release of Israeli hostages. 

"However, we will not lose focus on the plight of civilians in Gaza," they said, calling on the government of Israel to take a string of "urgent and essential" steps. 

These included ensuring that international NGOs could operate in Gaza in a "sustained and predictable" way. 

"As 31 December approaches, many established international NGO partners are at risk of being de-registered because of the government of Israel's restrictive new requirements," the statement said. 

It also called for the UN and its partners to be able to continue their work in Gaza and for the lifting of "unreasonable restricts on imports considered to have a dual use". 

This included medical and shelter equipment. 

The foreign ministers also called for the opening of crossings to boost the flows of humanitarian aid into Gaza. 

While welcoming the partial opening of the Allenby crossing, they said other corridors for moving goods remained closed or severely restricted for humanitarian aid, including Rafah. 

"Bureaucratic customs processes and extensive screenings are causing delays, while commercial cargo is being allowed in more freely," the statement said. 

"The target of 4,200 trucks per week, including an allocation of 250 UN trucks per day, should be a floor not a ceiling. These targets should be lifted so we can be sure the vital supplies are getting in at the vast scale needed," it added. 

Arab World

UN Condemns Israel's Moves against Agency for Palestinian Refugees

UNRWA center targeted by Israeli shelling in northern Gaza (DPA)
UNRWA center targeted by Israeli shelling in northern Gaza (DPA)
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UN Condemns Israel's Moves against Agency for Palestinian Refugees

UNRWA center targeted by Israeli shelling in northern Gaza (DPA)
UNRWA center targeted by Israeli shelling in northern Gaza (DPA)

The United Nations warned Tuesday that recent actions by Israel against the UN agency for Palestinian refugees risked depriving millions of people of basic services such as education and healthcare.

Israel's parliament passed new legislation on Monday formally stripping the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) of diplomatic immunity, and barring Israeli companies from providing water or electricity to the agency's institutions, AFP reported.

According to UNRWA, the legislation also grants the Israeli government the authority to expropriate the agency's properties in East Jerusalem, including its headquarters and main vocational training center.

UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini condemned the legislation as "outrageous", decrying it on social media as "part of an ongoing, systematic campaign to discredit UNRWA and thereby obstruct the core role that the agency plays providing human-development assistance and services to Palestine refugees".

Filippo Grandi, the outgoing head of the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, and a former UNRWA chief, also criticised the move as "very unfortunate".

In an interview with AFP, he highlighted that UNRWA, unlike other UN agencies, provides basic public services such as education and healthcare to the millions of registered Palestinian refugees it serves across Gaza and the West Bank, as well as in Lebanon, Jordan and Syria.

"If you deprive those people of those services... then you had better find a substitute," he said, warning: "I think it would be very difficult."

"At the moment, there is a great risk that millions of people will be deprived of basic services if UNRWA is further deprived of space to work, and resources to work."

Israel has been ratcheting up pressure on UNRWA over the past two years.

It has accused the agency of providing cover for Hamas militants, claiming that some UNRWA employees took part in the militant group's October 7, 2023 assault on Israel, which sparked the war in Gaza.

A series of UN-linked internal and external investigations found some "neutrality-related issues" at UNRWA, but stressed Israel had not provided conclusive evidence for its headline allegation.

Grandi criticised the torrent of accusations that have swirled around the agency.

"UNRWA is a very indispensable organization in the Middle East," he said.

"Contrary to much of the frankly baseless rhetoric that we have heard in the past couple of years, UNRWA is a force for peace and stability," he added.

"In a region in which you need every bit of stability and efforts towards peace, it would be really irresponsible to let such an important organization decline further."