Israel set to release 24 Palestinian women, 15 teenagers from Israeli jails for 13 hostages: report

A man walks past a billboard calling for the return of about 240 hostages who were abducted during the Oct. 7, Hamas attack on Israel. in Jerusalem on Friday, Nov. 24, 2023. AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean

Israel will release more than three dozen prisoners in exchange for 13 hostages on Friday, according to a report.

Qadura Fares, the Palestinian commissioner for prisoners, said Israel will release 39 Palestinians prisoners, including 24 women and 15 teenagers from the West Bank or Jerusalem, in exchange for 13 hostages due to be freed by Hamas from the Gaza Strip, Reuters reported.

The prisoners will be handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross at Israel's Ofer military jail around 4 p.m. (1400 GMT), Fares said.

The figure coincides with the previously reported number of hostages to be released at the Gaza-Egypt border — the 13 women and children who were among some 240 people taken hostage by Hamas gunmen during the deadly Oct. 7 terror attack in southern Israel.

"After the Red Cross receives the (Palestinian) prisoners, the ones from Jerusalem will go to Jerusalem and the ones from the West Bank will gather in Betunia municipal council where their families will be waiting,” Fares told Reuters.

The highly anticipated prisoner release Friday afternoon comes hours after an Israeli-Hamas ceasefire began at 7 a.m. (0500 GMT).