Under a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement in Gaza, the world’s longest-serving political prisoner was released from an Israeli jail on Thursday after 44 years. A key figure in the prisoner movement, he was arrested in 1978 and sentenced to life imprisonment for attacking an Israeli target. Although he was freed in a 2011 prisoner swap, Israel rearrested him on June 18, 2014, sentencing him to 30 months in prison. After completing that sentence, Israel reinstated an additional 18 years to his original life term. Even when his brother passed away, he was not allowed to attend the funeral.