Freed Palestinian memorizes entire Holy Quran during two years in Israeli prison

Freed Palestinian detainee Mohammad Nazzal memorized the entire Holy Quran while being held in an Israeli prison for two years without charge. He was recently released by the Israeli occupation authorities and reunited with his family after years of separation.

A heartwarming video of Nazzal embracing his mother following his release surfaced online, showing the pair overcome with emotion after being apart for two years.

The young man hails from the town of Qabatiya, south of Jenin in the occupied West Bank. His family has suffered greatly under the occupation, Nazzal’s brother was previously killed by Israeli forces.

According to Palestinian rights groups, more than 9,000 Palestinians remain in Israeli detention without due legal process or the right to defense. Around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners were released under a recent ceasefire deal with Hamas, which also involved the exchange of Israeli hostages.

While the release of Palestinian prisoners has brought moments of joy to their families, many have reportedly been rearrested on minor or unsubstantiated charges. In November 2023, for instance, Israel released 240 Palestinian detainees as part of a truce agreement but later rearrested 30 of them.

Meanwhile, Hamas has yet to return all the bodies of deceased Israeli hostages. Of the 28 bodies agreed to be handed over, 16 have been returned so far, while 20 living hostages were released on October 10.

Israel has continued to threaten to end the ceasefire, citing delays in the recovery of the remaining bodies. Hamas officials, along with Egyptian teams and Red Cross personnel, have been granted limited access to search for the remains believed to be buried under rubble in Gaza, in areas near the yellow-line border, under strict Israeli supervision.