On October 28, 2025, a sharp debate erupted in Israel as 55 members of the Knesset and government ministers from the ruling coalition signed a letter urging President Isaac Herzog to pardon or commute the sentences of Jewish Israelis convicted of murdering Palestinians. The move, which comes in the wake of a high-profile prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas, has drawn both passionate support and fierce condemnation from across the country’s political spectrum—and has brought renewed scrutiny to the lives of both Israeli and Palestinian prisoners caught in the crossfire of ongoing conflict.
The petition to President Herzog, reported by outlets including Ynet and VINnews, was spearheaded by MK Limor Son Har-Melech of the Otzma Yehudit party, with backing from the right-wing organization Honenu. It was signed by representatives from all coalition parties—Otzma Yehudit, Likud, Shas, United Torah Judaism, and Religious Zionism—as well as prominent government figures such as Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir. Among the 25 Jewish prisoners whose release is being sought are Ami Popper, serving a 40-year sentence since 1990 for killing seven Palestinian workers, Amiram Ben-Uliel, convicted for the deadly 2015 arson attack on the Dawabsheh family, and Yosef Haim Ben-David, sentenced for the brutal 2014 murder of Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdeir.
The lawmakers’ letter, as cited by Ynet, reads: “Over the past few days, the Israeli government has been releasing thousands of terrorists. None of us desires the release of those heinous terrorists who have harmed so many families in Israel. However, the non-release of Jewish prisoners represents a policy of double standards.” The signatories emphasized that their support for clemency does not imply approval of the crimes committed, but argued that the current policy is unjust. “While these Jews languish in prison and their families suffer and sometimes even fall victim to terror, they watch as terrorists, including vile murderers, return to their families and to freedom. We call upon you, Mr. President, to act for the release of this small group of Jewish prisoners and to correct this injustice.”
MK Limor Son Har-Melech, who has visited Jewish security prisoners dozens of times over the past six years and is a vocal advocate for their release, told Ynet: “There is no moral justification for keeping Jews in prison who, even if they made a mistake, pose no danger to the public. The time has come to correct this injustice.” She has also publicly questioned the convictions of some, notably Amiram Ben-Uliel, and described the conditions under which these prisoners were convicted as “difficult and complex.”
The petition comes in direct response to the recent prisoner exchange deal between Israel and Hamas, which began after a ceasefire took effect on October 11, 2025. As part of the agreement, Israel released approximately 1,968 Palestinian prisoners—including 1,718 detained since the escalation of violence after October 7, 2023—in exchange for 20 Israeli captives and four bodies, as reported by The New Arab. The release of Palestinian prisoners, many of whom were held without formal charges under administrative detention, has been described by some Israeli politicians as a necessary but painful concession. Yet, for those calling for the release of Jewish prisoners, the deal represents a troubling double standard.
Not everyone in Israeli politics agrees with this assessment. MK Naama Lazimi of The Democrats sharply criticized the petition, saying, “There is no depth of moral degradation that supporters of Jewish terror will not sink to, even exploiting a hostage rescue deal, which they themselves opposed, in order to release murderers. This government is a moral stain on our country.” Her words reflect a deep unease among many Israelis who see any equivalence between Palestinian detainees and Jewish Israelis convicted of deadly attacks as morally and legally indefensible.
President Herzog, who under Israeli law has the authority to grant pardons, is reportedly weighing the requests seriously. According to Ynet, Herzog has held discussions with Justice Minister Yariv Levin and has instructed the pardons departments in both the President’s Residence and the Ministry of Justice to conduct administrative reviews of the cases in question. While no final decision has been announced, the possibility of sentence reductions or commutations for high-profile prisoners such as Ami Popper has reignited debate over justice, accountability, and national identity in Israel.
Meanwhile, the human toll of the conflict remains painfully evident on the Palestinian side. As hundreds of Palestinians were released at the Kerem Shalom crossing in the weeks leading up to October 28, 2025, their stories—documented by The New Arab—paint a harrowing picture of life inside Israeli detention. Ibrahim Abu Odeh, a 35-year-old from Jabalia refugee camp, recounted his seven months in Israeli custody as a time of relentless abuse. “They handcuffed us, threw us to the ground, and left us under the open sky for 24 hours, with no food, no water, no sleep,” he recalled. “We were blindfolded, faces pressed into dirt. The world shrank to the sound of boots, curses, and screams.”
Dr. Mohammed Abu Musa, a physician from Khan Younis, spent 20 months in Israeli prisons after being detained during a raid on Nasser Hospital. “The place was made for torture,” he said of Sde Teiman detention center. “We were forced to kneel for hours, hands tied behind our backs. If someone moved, they were kicked. If you breathed too loudly, you were hit.” Both men described physical and psychological torment, deprivation, and a sense of being erased from the world outside.
Upon their release, the emotional impact was profound—but so too was the realization that freedom did not mean the end of suffering. Many returned to find their homes destroyed, their families shattered, and their communities struggling to recover from the devastation of war. Dr. Mohammed Zaqout, Director General of Field Hospitals in Gaza, told The New Arab that over 70 percent of released prisoners suffered from skin diseases, malnutrition, untreated injuries, and severe psychological trauma. “But the deepest wounds are psychological: chronic fear, hallucinations, insomnia,” he noted.
For some, the transition from prison to freedom was as jarring as the initial arrest. Ahmed Faisal, another released prisoner, described his first steps outside as “walking out of a mass grave.” The joy of reunion was tempered by the reality of returning to a homeland still scarred by conflict. “The prison hadn’t ended. It had only changed shape,” he observed, capturing the sense of ongoing struggle that defines daily life in Gaza.
As the debate over prisoner releases continues in Israel, the stories of those affected—on both sides of the conflict—underscore the complexities and human costs of policies shaped by decades of violence and mistrust. Whatever decision President Herzog ultimately makes, the consequences will ripple far beyond the walls of any prison, touching families, communities, and the fragile prospects for peace in a region long defined by its divisions.