Israel to Release Five Lebanese Detainees Amid Ongoing Negotiations

Israel announced Thursday it would release five Lebanese citizens who had been detained in areas under IDF control in southern Lebanon. The Prime Minister's Office stated that the decision was made in the context of ongoing negotiations with Lebanon and efforts to locate the remains of Jewish leaders abducted and killed in the mid-1980s. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been pursuing this issue for decades, dating back to his tenure as Israel's ambassador to the UN.

Intensive efforts by both Lebanon and Israel in recent months have focused on locating and recovering the bodies, including field operations. Following these efforts, and after investigations confirmed the detainees were civilians not involved in terrorism, Israel decided to release them. The Prime Minister's Office noted that there was no justification for their continued detention.

An Israeli source had previously indicated the planned release, describing it as part of ongoing communications and negotiations between the two countries. Saudi channel Al-Hadath reported that the Lebanese army received one of the detainees, Malek Kamal Ghazi, from the International Committee of the Red Cross. Ghazi was arrested in October 2025 in the town of Ainata and was reportedly undergoing medical checks after arriving on the Lebanese side.

Lebanese channel MTV, citing a Lebanese political source, reported that the release is intended to support direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel.