The Hamas office of prisoner affairs announced Sunday that Hamas prisoners in Israeli prisons will start a hunger strike on Monday, following Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's announcement at Sunday's cabinet meeting that he will downgrade their conditions.

Hamas spokesman Riyadh Ashkar said the prisoners were protesting the moving of senior Hamas prisoners to separate and isolated cells. He called on those holding abducted Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit to hold fast to their demands and not back down. The Nasr Salah Ad-Din terror brigade published a declaration that it would abduct more Israeli soldiers to use as bargaining chips for the release of Arab prisoners.