Lebanon said on Thursday that it had received a man released from Israeli detention, after Israel announced that five people detained in the south of the country would be freed, Middle East Eye reported.
The Lebanese army received the man following his return by the International Committee of the Red Cross, according to the report. He was the first detainee handed back since Beirut sought the release of an initial group during talks held in August.
Those discussions concerned people imprisoned by Israel after the war began in 2024. The source material did not identify the man transferred on Thursday or provide information about the circumstances of his detention. It also did not specify where in southern Lebanon he had been detained.
Israel’s announcement covered five people held from Lebanon’s south. However, the report provided no names or further details about the remaining four detainees, including when their releases were expected to take place or how they would be transferred. It was also not stated whether all five were among the initial group whose release Beirut raised during the August talks.
The International Committee of the Red Cross facilitated the return of the first man to the Lebanese army. No additional information was provided about the route or location of the handover, or about the man’s condition after his release.
The transfer marked the first reported return of a detainee since Lebanon raised the issue in the August discussions. Israel’s stated plan to release five people indicated that further handovers were expected, although no timetable was included in the report.
The development concerned detainees taken from southern Lebanon during the period following the start of the 2024 war. Beyond the first transfer and Israel’s announcement regarding five releases, the available report did not give details about the detention cases, the content of the August talks or any arrangements for subsequent returns.
Reporting attribution: based on reporting by Middle East Eye — original source: https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/lebanon-receives-first-prisoner-five-be-freed-israel.