Palestinians celebrate first phase prisoner swap; Israel retorts with warning

Oct 18, 2011 (TSR) – Earlier Tuesday, Hamas militants in Gaza freed Israel’s IDF soldier, Galid Shalit in a swap for more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners.

Tens of thousands of Palestinians waved and hoisted green flags as they celebrated for the first phase prisoner swap between Hamas and Israel. Meanwhile, political leaders now are competing for who gets the credit for the most significant prisoner release by Israel in nearly three decades. Gaza’s Hamas rulers negotiated the swap, with Egyptian mediation. Abbas may suffer politically as a result of the swap for over years of negotiating with Israel, he has only been able to bring about the release of those who had little time left on their sentences. However, today’s swap is the most significant since Israel released hundreds of Palestinians in 1985. The 477 prisoners freed, in exchange for Schalit, is clearly a victory for President Mahmoud Abbas for majority of the prisoners had been serving life terms for killing Israelis, and their release violated a long-standing Israeli pledge not to free those with “blood on their hands” which is a huge slap on Israel’s face. While addressing a crowd of thousands, with the released prisoners and their relatives in Ramallah, Abbas praised the released prisoners as “freedom fighters” and suggested that his method of negotiations was also bearing fruit. This was the first time he referred to an additional prisoner release, and there was no immediate Israeli comment.

One of the released Hamas leaders, Yehiye Sinwar, called on the group’s military wing to kidnap more Israeli soldiers in order to free the remaining prisoners in Israeli jails, “We shall spare no efforts to liberate the rest of our brothers and sisters,” Sinwar told Hamas’ al-Aqsa TV. “We urge the Al Qassam Brigades (the Hamas military wing) to kidnap more soldiers to exchange them for the freedom of our loved ones who are still behind bars,” Sinwar, one of the founders of the Hamas military wing, is one of those who had been sentenced to life in prison for his role in the kidnapping and killing of two Israeli soldiers. More than 300 of the prisoners arrived in both Palestinian territories, Gaza and the West Bank. Several thousand are still held by Israel on a range of security offenses. NETANYAHU RETALIATES WITH HAMAS WARNINGIsraeli Prime Minister Netanyahu issued a warning as soon as Sergeant First Class Gilad Shalit was released today after more than five years in Hamas captivity. Shalit landed at Tel Nof air base in central Israel on board a military helicopter. He said, “We will continue to fight terror and every released terrorist who returns to terror will be held accountable.”

According to IDF, while holding Sgt. 1st Class Shalit in captivity, the Hamas terrorist organization denied repeated requests by the Red Cross in Gaza to monitor his condition and limited contact with him to only letters and video tapes. Sgt. 1st Class Shalit was 19 years old at the time of his abduction. He is the son of Aviva and Noam Shalit and the brother of Yoel and Hadas. Gilad Shalit (rank at the time: Cpl.) was kidnapped early on Sunday June 25, 2006. Hamas attacked Shalit’s tank, that was defending the security fence near the southern Gaza Strip at the time, and crossed the border using an underground tunnel dug near the Kerem Shalom crossing. During the attack, the tank commander, First Lt. Hanan Barak, and another soldier in the tank, Staff Sgt. Pavel Slotzker were killed. Four of the soldiers in the post were injured and Hamas militants kidnapped Shalit into the Gaza Strip, using the tunnel they dug.

In response to the kidnapping, the IDF began Operation Summer Rains in the Gaza Strip on June 28, 2006 and lasted through November 26, 2006. Ground forces entered the Gaza Strip for the first time since the unilateral disengagement was executed.

Shalit’s parents, Noam and Aviva, have led an emotional campaign to win their son’s release for the past five years. They have led nationwide marches and set up a protest tent outside the official residence of the prime minister. During the swap, clashes erupted between circa 200 young Palestinians at the checkpoint and Israeli soldiers several hundred yards (meters) away, after the families were told they had waited in the wrong place. Israeli troops fired tear gas and Palestinians threw stones for about half an hour. Some of the young men climbed atop a separation fence near the checkpoint and draped it with flags of Hamas and Abbas’ Fatah movement. The buses carrying the prisoners were driven directly to Abbas’ headquarters in the West Bank for safety to reunite with their relatives.