Israel Releases Longest-serving Palestinian Prisoner

Karim Younis (AFP)
Karim Younis (AFP)
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Israel Releases Longest-serving Palestinian Prisoner

Karim Younis (AFP)
Karim Younis (AFP)

Israel released the longest-serving Palestinian prisoner Karim Younis, who spent 40 years in Israeli prisons.

Younis was released on the roadside of a Jewish town without any means of communication, but he finally arrived in his hometown, where a grand reception and celebration were held for him.

“I got out of prison and left behind my heart with my comrades in captivity,” Younis told the crowd gathering in the Palestinian village of Ara within Israel.

Israeli police authorities and the Israel Prison Service held a meeting on the eve of Younis’ release at the office of the Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

At the meeting, it was decided that Younis should not be released at the penitentiary’s main gate but must instead be dropped off at a location that turned out to be a bus station in Ranana, a town north of Tel Aviv.

According to one of the relatives, after being dropped off at the station, Younis met by chance with Palestinian workers from the West Bank who helped him reach out to his relatives.

Younis was eventually picked up by a relative and brought to his hometown of Ara, where he was celebrated as a hero.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh, Speaker of the Palestinian National Council Rawhi Fattouh, the Fatah movement, and the rest of the factions congratulated Younis on his freedom.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Younis “represents a symbol of the Palestinian people and the free people of the world in steadfastness.”

The Israeli government had prevented his release for 40 years, despite the conclusion of 18 prisoner exchange deals.

Moreover, authorities examined legal means that would allow them to exile Younis or put him under administrative detention. Eventually, they decided to refer to the attorney general justice to strip him of his Israeli citizenship.

Younis, however, openly said he won’t be trying to get his hands on an Israeli passport which he said was the “world’s worst travel document.”

“Anyone with an Israeli passport is faced with hatred from anyone who considers themselves free,” he said.



Syria Reaches Deal to Integrate SDF within State Institutions, Presidency Says

A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (R) shaking the hand of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) commander-in-chief Mazloum Abdi after the signing of an agreement, to integrate the SDF into the state institutions, in the Syrian capital Damascus on March 10, 2025. (SANA / AFP)
A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (R) shaking the hand of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) commander-in-chief Mazloum Abdi after the signing of an agreement, to integrate the SDF into the state institutions, in the Syrian capital Damascus on March 10, 2025. (SANA / AFP)
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Syria Reaches Deal to Integrate SDF within State Institutions, Presidency Says

A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (R) shaking the hand of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) commander-in-chief Mazloum Abdi after the signing of an agreement, to integrate the SDF into the state institutions, in the Syrian capital Damascus on March 10, 2025. (SANA / AFP)
A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (R) shaking the hand of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) commander-in-chief Mazloum Abdi after the signing of an agreement, to integrate the SDF into the state institutions, in the Syrian capital Damascus on March 10, 2025. (SANA / AFP)

The Kurdish-led and US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which controls much of Syria's oil-rich northeast, has signed a deal agreeing to integrate into Syria's new state institutions, the Syrian presidency said on Monday.

The deal, which included a complete cessation of hostilities, was signed by interim Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and the SDF's commander, Mazloum Abdi.

Under the deal, whose text was posted online by the presidency, all civilian and military institutions in northeast Syria will be integrated within the state, which will thus take over control of borders, airports and oil and gas fields.

The SDF agrees to support the government in combating remnants of deposed president Bashar al-Assad's regime, and any threats to Syria's security and unity.

Since Assad was overthrown by Sharaa's Islamist forces in December, groups backed by Türkiye, one of Sharaa's main supporters, have clashed with the SDF, the main ally in a US coalition against ISIS militants in Syria.

The SDF is spearheaded by the YPG militia, a group that Ankara sees as an extension of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants who have fought the Turkish state for 40 years.

Türkiye regards the PKK, YPG and SDF as terrorist groups, and Sharaa's new Damascus administration had been pressing the SDF to merge into newly-minted state security forces.

Abdi had previously expressed a willingness for his forces to be part of the new defense ministry, but said they should join as a bloc rather than individuals, an idea that was rejected by the new government.

The US and Türkiye’s Western allies list the PKK as a terrorist group, but not the YPG or the SDF.