The Israeli Prime Minister's Office confirmed reports on Thursday that five detained Lebanese citizens will be released and stressed that they are not members of a terrorist organization, were not engaged in terrorism, and that there is no reason to continue holding them in Israel.
The office further revealed the reason for the release, explaining that it comes in light of efforts by Israel and Lebanon to locate and repatriate the bodies of the leaders of the Jewish community in Lebanon, who were abducted and murdered by terrorist organizations in the mid-1980s.
According to a statement from the Prime Minister's Office, in recent months, numerous operations have been carried out to locate the bodies, both by Lebanon and Israel, including field operations.
"In light of this significant activity, it was decided to release five Lebanese citizens who were detained in areas under IDF control in southern Lebanon," the statement reads.
According to the Prime Minister's Office, Netanyahu has been engaged on this issue of the slain leaders for decades, dating back to his tenure as Israel's Ambassador to the UN.
According to a report earlier on Thursday by Channel 12, the issue of the detainees was formally included in the seventh round of talks between Israel and Lebanon, held in Rome in August under US mediation. During the discussions, the sides exchanged preliminary lists of detainees and missing persons.
According to Lebanese sources, the government in Beirut demanded that the first stage of the process include the release of a group of civilian detainees. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said on August 7 that "positive progress" had been made on the issue, although no final agreement had been announced at the time.
This is not the first time Israel has taken such a step: In March 2025, Israel released five Lebanese citizens who had been held in Israel, in a move described by the Prime Minister's Office as a "gesture to the Lebanese President." The move was coordinated with the United States and in parallel with progress in talks on border issues.