Gaza Strip, Feb. 15, 2010 (Pal Telegraph)- Israel has released Palestinian prisoner Eyad Abu Shiha. He was received after serving 10 years in Israeli jails by the Waed Society for Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners and a large mass of Palestinians from the northern Gaza Strip.

Abu Shiha, 33, was arrested on July 16, 2000, at the Erez checkpoint. During his imprisonment, Abu Shiha was moved to several prisons: Nafha, Ashkelon and the Negev desert.

Abu Shiha had been deprived of family visits since 2005 and he said the hardest experience for him was the death of his father while he was still in prison.

Amid chants of "thank you God," Abu Shiha was warmly received by members of the Waed Society, his family and hundreds of Gazans. They distributed sweets and offered Abu Shiha congratulations on his release from Israeli jails.

Meanwhile, up to 7,500 Palestinian prisoners are still confined in Israeli jails under miserable circumstances.

Last year, some hundreds of Palestinian prisoners were expected to be released in exchange for Israeli captive Gilad Shalit, but a deal between Israel and Hamas couldn't be reached.