Thousands of Palestinians erupted with joy in the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis on Monday, as Red Cross buses brought back nearly 1,700 former prisoners.

Some climbed the sides of the slowly-moving buses as they weaved their way through the dense crowds gathered at Nasser Hospital, to hug or kiss a loved one they recognised.

"The greatest joy is seeing my whole family gathered to welcome me," Yusef Afana, a 25-year-old released prisoner from north Gaza, told AFP.

"I spent 10 months in prison -- some of the hardest days I've ever lived. The pain in prison isn't only physical; it's pain in the soul," he said, adding, like many of his comrades, that he hoped for all other prisoners in Israeli jails to be released soon.

At Nasser Hospital, men in military fatigues and black balaclavas struggled to keep order as the prisoners wearing the Israel Prison Service's grey jumpsuits came off the buses.

Patriotic music blared on speakers, while Palestinian flags flew alongside those of Hamas or the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

Shadi Abu Sidu, a 32-year-old........

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