Israel's Ministry of Justice has announced a list of 250 Palestinian prisoners it plans to release in exchange for Israeli hostages.
The list was made public shortly after Israel's government approved the first phase of a ceasefire deal with Hamas.
The Israeli government said hostages would be released on Monday, local time, while US President Donald Trump has said the hostage release could take place on Monday or Tuesday, because of the difficulty of recovering some of the captives.
Hamas said it had not agreed to the final list of names.
However, the Israeli list indicates who — and who will not — be released as part of the deal.
The list
On the public list, a raft of offences are detailed next to each prisoner's name.
Many included charges of murder or attempted murder, with other acts such as bomb making, kidnapping, or planting an explosive device noted.
Many of the prisoners are serving life sentences for involvement in the murder of Israelis during the past four decades.
Some prisoners on the list have maintained they are innocent of crimes they have been convicted of.
The list includes not only individuals associated with Hamas, but also Fatah and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
Among them is Maher al-Hashlamoun, listed under his full name and affiliated with Islamic Jihad.
Hashlamoun is serving life sentences for the 2014 murder of Dalia Lemkus, 26, and for the attempted murder of two other people.
A last-minute petition by Choose Life Forum, a group of bereaved family members whose loved ones are victims of terrorist attacks, was rejected by an Israeli Court.
High-profile figure excluded
The list does not include some chiefs Hamas has demanded, including popular Fatah figure Marwan Barghouti.
Barghouti has repeatedly been likened to a Palestinian "Nelson Mandela" and last year The Economist described Barghouti as "the world's most important prisoner".
Barghouti was a political leader during the Second Intifada, the Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation in 2000, and survived multiple assassination attempts.
However, Israeli authorities accused him of orchestrating attacks between December 2000 and April 2002, including suicide bombings on Israeli soil.
They allege he had coordinated and authorised these attacks through the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a coalition of armed groups that emerged during the Second Intifada.
Israeli authorities also alleged Barghouti had founded and led the Brigades.
He denied all of the claims but has been imprisoned ever since.
Despite that, polling by the Palestinian Centre for Policy and Survey Research (PSR) consistently puts Barghouti as the most popular candidate for president of the Palestinian Authority.
The Israeli government has also said it will not be returning the bodies of Hamas leaders Yahya and Mohammad Sinwar.
There are more than 11,000 Palestinians in Israeli detention, according to data provided by the Israel Prison Service, 87 per cent of whom have never been charged or convicted.
Preparations for hostage return
There are still 48 Israeli hostages in Gaza, 20 of whom are believed to be alive.
Hamas has indicated that recovering the bodies of the dead may take longer than releasing those who are alive.
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the planned hostage release, saying families would "finally get to be with their loved ones".
"The government has just now approved the framework for the release of all of the hostages — the living and the deceased," Mr Netanyahu's English-language X account said.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said troops had begun positioning themselves along "updated deployment lines," which would allow the release of Israeli hostages.
Mr Netanyahu said Israeli forces will remain in Gaza to pressure Hamas until it disarms.
More than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's assault on Gaza, launched after Hamas-led militants stormed through Israeli towns and a music festival on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and capturing 251 hostages.
Reuters
