This is the list of the prisoners released by Israel as part of the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange agreement with Hamas in exchange for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldier Gilad Shalit.
The agreement is implemented in two stages – In the first stage, Gilad Shalit was transferred from the Gaza Strip to Egypt and from there to Israel; concurrently, Israel released 477 prisoners. In the second stage, which took place during December 2011, another 550 prisoners were released.
The 1,027 prisoners released were mainly Palestinians and Arab-Israelis, though among the prisoners released there was also a Syrian, UkrainianUkrainian mother of two among released Palestinian prisoners | World | RIA NovostiReleased Ukrainian woman in Israel to ask for resident permit in Palestine, Kyiv Post (28 October 2011) and a Jordanian.Deported Palestinian prisoners face new life of exile – World – CBC News 280 of these were sentenced to life in prison for planning and perpetrating violent attacks against Israelis."Hamas to gain politically from prisoner swap deal ". News.xinhuanet.com. Retrieved on 2011-10-20. The military Hamas leader Ahmed Jabari was quoted in the Saudi Arabian newspaper Al-Hayat as confirming that the prisoners released as part of the deal were collectively responsible for the killing of 569 Israeli civilians.Army Radio newscast, 20 October 2011
In October 2012, data compiled by the Israeli government indicated that dozens of the released Palestinian prisoners in the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange had resumed terrorist activity. Many of them have joined the leadership of Hamas, other Palestinian prisoners have instead developed weapons and fired rockets at Israeli population centers, and some have recruited members to new terrorist cells in the West Bank. One of these cells in Hebron planted a bomb and plotted to kidnap an Israeli soldier. Prisoners in the West Bank have also engaged in violent activity, and Israel arrested 40 of them for rioting, hurling Molotov cocktails, handling funding for terrorism, and other acts.
First phase: 477 prisoners released on October 18, 2011 In the first stage of the prisoner swap deal Israel released 477 prisoners, 450 men and 27 women.
The official list, which includes the crimes the prisoners were convicted of, was published by the Israel Prison Services and is available in Hebrew only,הודעה בדבר שחרור אסירים בטחוניים though a Google Translate version into English has been placed online as well.Partial list of terrorists released by Israel – and what they did