GAZA CITY, Palestine

Held for over 11 months in Israeli detention, freed Palestinian prisoner Adel Sobeih cannot believe that he is finally back in the Gaza Strip.

The 22-year-old man was detained by Israeli army forces during a raid on Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City in March 2024.

He was freed on Saturday in the latest prisoner swap with Israel, which included the release of 369 detainees, including 333 Gazans, in return for three Israeli captives.

— 'My leg was in good condition. I have reports from Gaza showing it was in good condition'

— 'Israeli army told me to sign a paper for the amputation of my leg. They told me that if I didn't sign, I would die'

Palestinian teenager says that the Israeli army deceived and… pic.twitter.com/cLfqxPh8zh

— Anadolu English (@anadoluagency) February 16, 2025

Amid tears of joy, Sobeih boarded the bus that transported him through the Kerem Shalom (Karam Abu Salem) crossing, accompanied by Red Cross representatives, only to find Gaza still alive with energy despite its deep wounds.

As he arrived, his weary eyes told stories of pain and suffering, between the spark of precious freedom and the shadows of the painful memories left by his captivity.

For Sobeih, imprisonment was more than just being in jail; he endured the most brutal forms of physical and psychological torture, which cost him one of his legs due to deliberate medical neglect in Israeli detention centers.

"My leg was amputated even though it was healthy according to medical reports from Gaza, but they gave me the choice between signing for amputation or dying,” Sobeih told Anadolu.

The young Palestinian recalled that he was told by Israeli soldiers that, "Your life doesn’t matter to us."

"I was tortured inside the hospital with a lighter, and I was chained to a hospital bed for 50 days under strict surveillance."

Torture

Sobeih said that he endured different forms of torture at the hands of his Israeli jailers.

"They would make me crawl despite my injury and I was subjected to electric shocks. Cigarettes were extinguished on my body, and I was transferred between prisons."

In a video that went viral on social media, Sobeih recounted that he was beaten and humiliated by soldiers, attacked with police dogs, and subjected to gas, sound bombs, and pepper spray.

"The prisoners suffer daily, they face all kinds of torture, and we were beaten and humiliated,” he said.

He pointed out that there was medical neglect inside Israeli prisons, with prisoners left to face death without receiving any treatment.

"We die when they treat us," Sobeih said.

"I still can’t believe that I’m in Gaza with my people. They (the Israeli army) told me that Gaza was gone. I can't believe this, Long Live Palestine, we have broken Israel's backbone.”

Upon entering Gaza, crowds gathered near the European Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis to welcome the released prisoners, raising Palestinian flags, chanting passionately, and rushing to embrace the freed prisoners.

A ceasefire agreement took effect in Gaza on Jan. 19, halting Israel’s genocidal war, which has killed more than 48,200 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and left the enclave in ruins.

Nineteen Israeli captives and five Thai workers have been released in exchange for 1,135 Palestinian prisoners under the first phase of the deal.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.