Army of Islam: “Shalit is held by Hamas fighters”

Thursday January 18, 2007 03:50 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC & Agencies

Israeli online daily, Haaretz, reported that the Army of Islam, one of the three Palestinian groups holding the Israeli corporal Gilad Shalit captive since June 25 2006, issued a handbill on Wednesday stating that Shalit is in the hands of Hamas fighters.

Gilad Shalit

Israeli online daily, Haaretz, reported that the Army of Islam, one of the three Palestinian groups holding the Israeli corporal Gilad Shalit captive since June 25 2006, issued a handbill on Wednesday stating that Shalit is in the hands of Hamas fighters.

The statement was distributed in the Gaza Strip and contradicts statements from the group that three armed groups are holding Shalit captive.

According to Haaretz, the Islamic Army is headed by Mumtaz Dormush, who recently fell out with Hamas after its activists killed two of his relatives.

So far, it is not clear whether the handbill is authentic, but the Army of Islam did not deny it.

Shalit was abducted in a cross border raid carried out by three Palestinian factions against a military post near the Gaza Strip border; two soldiers and two fighters were killed in the attack, and Shalit was abducted and has been held since then.

Shalit and two other soldiers were injured during the attack.

Shalit was abducted by fighters of the Al Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, the Popular Resistance Committees, and a previously unknown group calling itself the Army of Islam. 

palestine | palestinian attacks | news report saed at imemc dot org