Publish Date: 26 November 2023 - 17:20

Tehran, IRNA - After the heavy defeat suffered by the Zionist regime in October at the hands of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance in the intelligence field, the release of prisoners can be viewed as the second significant setback for this regime in the political arena.

The authorities of the Zionist regime had repeatedly claimed that they would level Gaza to the ground and continue their attacks until the complete elimination of Hamas.

Netanyahu had repeatedly stated explicitly that there would be "no ceasefire" unless "all hostages" were released. Even the Israeli military officials had emphasized that a temporary ceasefire would help Hamas, and they would not accept it.

The proposal for a ceasefire came from Hamas, as early as October 8! Even broader proposals than this were on the table. Israel, after 45 days of war, has actually accepted one of Hamas's proposals.

From the very beginning, Israel implicitly declared that the exchange of prisoners was a defeat and consistently emphasized the "unconditional release of all hostages" and that attacks will continue until Hamas is dismantled and all captives are released.

What happened now? Israel could not free the prisoners through military aggression but was ultimately forced to accept Hamas's proposal for a prisoner exchange, albeit for only a portion of them.

The quality of the exchange is also noteworthy. For every Israeli captive, three Palestinian prisoners were released. In addition, trucks carrying fuel and other necessary supplies also found their way to Gaza.

The excessive frustration of Zionist authorities and criticism from political currents within the regime regarding this exchange, as well as the joy expressed by the released Palestinian prisoners and their families and the Palestinian people, clearly indicate that the Israeli regime has suffered its second major defeat in the past 45 days.

The frustration among the authorities of the Zionist regime about the unsuccessful prisoner exchange and the jubilation of the Palestinian people is so intense that the Minister of Internal Security of the regime has labeled holding celebrations in occupied al-Quds for the release of prisoners as endorsing "terrorism".

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