Hamas: Videotape deal a step towards releasing all female prisoners
Hamas' deputy politburo chief says more details on 'videotape' deal expected Thursday or Friday. Hamas sources say clip one minute long, demands remain unchanged
"The video deal is an important step in setting the grounds for the release of all female Palestinian prisoners," Hamas' deputy politburo chief Moussa Abu Marzouk said Wednesday. He further stated that additional details on the deal will be released Thursday or Friday.
Abu Marzouk also mentioned that the Palestinians are standing their ground and further encouraged attempts by Palestinian groups to continue kidnapping Israeli soldiers to be exchanged for Palestinian prisoners.
Sources in Hamas told Ynet that the videotape is one minute long.
Abu Ubaida, spokesman for Izz al-Din al-Qassam stressed that the release of the prisoners does not mean Hamas has abandoned its claims regarding the Shalit deal and that all demands made by Hamas and the Palestinian organizations are still viable. "Our demands for the deal still stand," he said.
From the moment the list of released prisoners will be published, 48-hours will be given to file appeals. Assuming the appeals will be denied as has occurred in previous cases, Israel will receive the tape parallel to the release of the prisoners. The German mediator has already watched the videotape which is currently in Egypt, and Israel has been given a report on its content and Shalit's condition.
Unanimous decision
The release of the prisoners will be carried out subject to criteria set in the past for gestures during the month of Ramadan. They shall constitute part of the overall number of prisoners Israel will be required to release as part of the overall deal. The first step in releasing the tape is a result of extremely arduous work by the negotiations team headed by Hagai Hadas and the German mediator acting under the patronage of Egypt.
It should be noted that the current deal fulfills one of the conditions originally set by Israel, according to which any additional step in negotiations shall be subject to a sign of life from Shalit. The decision to release the female prisoners was made unanimously in the Political-Security Cabinet.
The 20 prisoners to be released in exchange for the videotape of Shalit is comprised of eight Nablus residents, four Ramallah residents, three from Hebron, three from Bethlehem, one from Jenin and one from the Gaza Strip. Seven of the prisoners are not affiliated with any group; four are from Hamas, three from the Islamic Jihad, five from Fatah and one from the Popular Front.
Palestinian sources reported that one of the prisoners to be released is Fatma Alzuk, resident of the Strip who was arrested by the IDF near the Erez crossing in 2007. The names of the rest of the prisoners have yet to be released, however one name does not appear in the list – that of Amna Muna who seduced teenager Ophir Rachum leading him to Ramallah in January 2001 where he was murdered.
Roni Sofer contributed to this report
