Turkey hosts 11 Palestinian exiles

Eleven Palestinian exiles have arrived in Ankara as Israel freed hundreds of Palestinian prisoners as part of a historic swap deal it made with its deadly rival Hamas, following years of negotiations to see a single Israeli sergeant return safely back home. Turkey received 11 Palestinian ex-prisoners shortly after midnight on Tuesday, diplomatic sources told Today's Zaman, in line with an agreement the opposing sides managed to reach through the reconciliation efforts of Egypt, Turkey and Germany. Meanwhile, Turkish senior sources approached by Today's Zaman acknowledged that the 11 Palestinians had been taken to the headquarters of the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) following their arrival at Ankara Esenboğa Airport, and had a medical examination at the MIT building. It has also emerged that MIT officials will remain in constant touch with the Palestinian exiles in the following days and receive counseling on their experiences of being held in Israeli prisons. The sources separately noted that there were no violations of the law regarding the deportation, since the Palestinians were given their Palestinian passports back in Egypt to enter Turkey, but although they are now inside the country, it would not be feasible for the exiles to travel freely due to concerns over their safety. Whether the deported Palestinians would like to remain in Turkey is another question the officials raised, as they noted, "It will not be possible to keep them using force if they want to leave," in which case officials of the concerned parties will be contacted to review the conditions.