After more than five years as a prisoner of Hamas, the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit was freed on Tuesday. The move came after Israel transferred hundreds of Palestinian prisoners to Egypt for their eventual releases into the Gaza Strip or abroad. Shalit is “alive and well,” according to the IDF, and he has already returned to Israel, where his family greeted him at the border. Israel will release a total of 1,027 prisoners in exchange for Shalit. An Israeli military official told the Associated Press that Shalit showed signs of malnutrition and lack of exposure to sunlight.
