Family readies welcome

CONVICTED: AFTER 34 YEARS, ISRAEL WILL RELEASE TWO BROTHERS

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A stone's throw from the wall separating Israel and the occupied West Bank, the Shamasneh family is ready to welcome home two sons jailed for the past 34 years.

Abdel Jawad and Mohammed are expected to be among the Palestinians freed from Israeli detention under the terms of the ceasefire agreement approved last week.

"Today I’m so happy the world feels too small for my joy," declared their elated mother, 83-year-old Halima Shamasneh.

"People called us and said: 'Their names are on the list — they're out, they're registered,'" she said.

Israel has drawn up a list of 250 names of Palestinian prisoners expected to be released today in exchange for the remaining Israeli hostages held in Gaza.

Halima and her husband Yusef gathered their children and grandchildren in the family home in the West Bank village of Qatanna just north of Jerusalem, to celebrate the news.

On the house's walls, the many photos of the brothers before their arrest have faded in colour.