Hundreds of Arabs detained in the Ansar camp in south Lebanon have been freed and hundreds of others are being transferred to a new camp inside Israel, the Israel Defense Force spokesman announced today.
Most of those being released are Shiite Moslems who were members of organizations regarded as “hostile” but had not taken an active part in activities against Israel. The decision to release them is regarded as a goodwill gesture to defuse the explosive atmosphere in the region.
Some 40 percent of the Ansar detainees who are being held under the terms of the Fourth Geneva Convention even though Israel does not consider them prisoners of war, had taken an active part in attacks against the IDF.
Another 40 percent had played a “passive” role by supplying the activists with arms and information, and the others, including Shiites and other Lebanese Moslem groups and Palestinians, were detained for membership in hostile organizations.
The detainees transferred to the new Israeli camp were brought south in civilian Israeli buses which had their windows boarded up. They were handcuffed and had their feet bound, and were blindfolded as they were led from the vehicles.
The Ansar prison inmates have received weekly visits from the International Red Cross, and weekly visits from family members.
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