Hamas denies Israeli claims that movement intends to harm Shalit

Tuesday October 23, 2007 19:02 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC & Agencies

Following a claim by Israeli media sources that Hamas would take revenge against Gilad Shalit for the Palestinain prisoner killed Monday, the Hamas movement on Tuesday denied the statement.

Israeli media on Tuesday reported that a statement was made by the armed wing of Hamas, affirming that they would "not stand idle before the attacks on the prisoners, and this will have painful consequences for the enemy regarding the case of Shalit and other issues."

A Hamas spokesperson stated that this was a modification of the original statement, which read, “The response to the Israeli oppression of Palestinian prisoners will be painful."

Other party officials claimed were quick to claim that they had no intention of harming Shalit, adding that they were investigating a number of avenues which they hoped would lead to his release.

Hamas has long called for a prisoner swap to secure the release of Shalit, but Israeli authorities have refused the offer.

Israel currently holds over 10,000 Palestinians as prisoners. The Palestinian resistance holds just one Israeli – Gilad Shalit.

Shalit was taken prisoner by Palestinian resistance fighters early last year.

palestine | prisoners | news report saed at imemc dot org