Hamas: Israel thwarts Shalit's release
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The Islamic Hamas movement Sunday accused Israel of thwarting a prisoner swap deal while saying the Hamas is keen to achieve the deal and release the Israeli soldier kidnapped in Gaza.
The Hamas will not change its conditions for reaching the prisoner exchange deal with Israel, Gaza-based Hamas spokesperson Fawzi Barhoum said in a press release.
Barhoum said by refusing to achieve the swap deal that would free Shalit, the Israeli government ignored the mounting anger of the international community and the family of the soldier who had been kidnapped by the Hamas fighters during a cross-border operation near Gaza-Israel borders years ago.
After the capture of Shalit, Israel imposed a blockade on the Gaza Strip which reached its peak after the Hamas movement seized control of the enclave by violence in 2007.
The Hamas and Israel have been negotiating the prisoner swap deal through German and Egyptian mediators since the Jewish state and the Islamic movement do not directly contact with each other.
The Hamas wants Israel to free as many as 1,000 prisoners in exchange for Shalit, including 450 Palestinian prisoners who have been sentenced to life in jail.
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