<div dir="ltr">
<h1>Palestinians burn ‘humiliating’ shirts after release from Israeli prisons</h1><p class="gmail-article__subhead"><em>Freed Palestinians burn ‘racist’ shirts forced onto them by Israel in exchange for captives after tense negotiations.</em></p><div class="gmail-responsive-image"><img src="https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/AFP__20250215__36XX2A4__v1__HighRes__PalestinianIsraelConflictPrisoners-1739633222.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80" alt="A Palestinian burns a sweatshirt featuring the prison service logo, a Star of David, and the slogan: "We do not forget and we do not forgive", that was given to freed Palestinian prisoners at the European Hospital in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip" width="433" height="288" style="margin-right: 25px;"></div>A Palestinian burns a provocative sweatshirt that was forced on released Palestinian prisoners [Bashar Taleb/AFP]<div class="gmail-article-info-block"><div class="gmail-article-b-l"><div class="gmail-article-author-name"><span class="gmail-article-by">By </span><span class="gmail-article-author-name-item"><a class="gmail-author-link" href="https://www.aljazeera.com/author/al_jazeera_staff_150119130629458">Al Jazeera Staff</a></span></div><div class="gmail-article-dates"><div class="gmail-date-simple"><span class="gmail-screen-reader-text">Published On 15 Feb 2025</span> -<font size="1"> <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/2/15/palestinians-burn-shirts-forced-to-wear-upon-release-from-israeli-jails">https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/2/15/palestinians-burn-shirts-forced-to-wear-upon-release-from-israeli-jails</a></font></div></div></div><div class="gmail-social-share-buttons"><div class="gmail-update-reading-list"></div></div></div><div class="gmail-update-reading-list"><span class="gmail-update-reading-list__tooltip" role="tooltip"></span></div><a class="gmail-social-share-button" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" aria-label="Share on Facebook" href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Faje.io%2Fu1f3lg"></a><a class="gmail-social-share-button" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" aria-label="Share on Twitter" href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Palestinians%20burn%20%E2%80%98humiliating%E2%80%99%20shirts%20after%20release%20from%20Israeli%20prisons&source=sharethiscom&related=sharethis&via=AJEnglish&url=https%3A%2F%2Faje.io%2Fu1f3lg"></a><a class="gmail-social-share-button gmail-copylink" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" aria-label="Copy link" href="https://aje.io/u1f3lg"></a><p>Israel’s
move to force the released Palestinians to wear shirts with a Star of
David logo and “we will not forget or forgive” written in Arabic has
prompted anger and been slammed as a “racist crime”.</p>
<p>On Saturday, 369 Palestinians <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/2/15/israeli-captives-story">were released</a> in exchange for three captives in Gaza following days of tense negotiations.</p>
<p>Before the exchange, the Israel Prison Service released photos of a
few of the Palestinians dressed in those provocative shirts. As the
Palestinians were being returned, a number of them wore their shirts
inside out in order to cover the messages.</p>
<div class="gmail-twitter-tweet gmail-twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"></div>
<p></p>
<p>Footage shot in Gaza by Al Jazeera showed a few Palestinians setting
fire to the shirts upon their arrival at the European Gaza Hospital in
Gaza’s Khan Younis.</p>
<p>“We condemn the occupation’s crime of placing racist slogans on the
backs of our heroic prisoners, and treating them with cruelty and
violence, in a blatant violation of humanitarian laws and norms,” Hamas
said in a statement.</p>
<p>It added that this is “in contrast to the resistance’s firm
commitment to moral values in treating the occupation’s prisoners”.</p>
<p>The Palestinian Islamic Jihad group also condemned the shirts as a “racist crime”.</p><div class="gmail-twitter-tweet gmail-twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"></div>
<p></p>
<p>According to the Israeli Broadcasting Authority, quoting an Israeli
source, there was criticism in Israel over the uniforms as well. A
source was quoted as saying that Israel’s political echelon was not
informed of the move.</p>
<p>The decision to have the Palestinians don the shirts was made by
Israel’s Prison Commissioner Kobi Yaacobi, the source told the
broadcaster.</p>
<p>Mohamad Elmasry, a professor in the media studies programme at the
Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, told Al Jazeera that this was
“another method” under which Israel intends to “dehumanise”
Palestinians.</p>
<p>The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which is
facilitating the exchange, called on all parties for more “dignified”
releases.</p>
<p>“Despite repeatedly calling for all transfers to be carried out in a
dignified and private manner, more must be done by all sides, including
the mediators, to improve future transfers,” the ICRC said in a
statement on Saturday.</p>
<div class="gmail-twitter-tweet gmail-twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"></div>
<p></p>
<p>The furore surrounding the provocative shirts underscores a long
policy of “humiliation”, according to Xavier Abu Eid, a political
analyst speaking to Al Jazeera from Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank.</p>
<p>“We’ve been analysing throughout these past weeks the humiliation of
Palestinian prisoners,” Abu Eid said. He noted this was “nothing new”
but not only damaged the prisoners but also their families.</p>
<p>A total of 24 captives and 985 Palestinians have been released since the ceasefire began in January, according to the ICRC.</p>
<br></div>