The Hamas terrorist organization celebrated the 35th anniversary of its founding with a large event in Gaza City Wednesday.
During the event, the Tavor rifle which Hamas claimed belonged to IDF lieutenant Hadar Goldin was displayed along with its serial number.
Goldin was killed during Operation Protective Edge when Hamas forces violated a humanitarian cease-fire. Hamas has held his body in Gaza for over eight years in violation of international law.
Also at the event, a tape was played with a rare statement by the head of the Hamas military branch, Mohammed Deif, in which he said: "Peace be upon you all the holy people, the wounded, the prisoners and the deported. We pledge to continue on your path until we meet G-d. The foreigners in our country and their founding fathers, at the height of their tyranny and devotion to the malicious idea of Zionism , failed to annihilate us, our people and erase our identity. All the flags unite and all the fronts unite for one great, noble and holy goal, which is the liberation of Palestine."
The leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Yahya Sinwar, stated that there were negotiations for the deal of prisoners who were arrested because of the election campaigns in Israel.
"We are giving the occupation a limited period of time to complete a prisoner deal. We will close the POW case forever, and we will find a way to release our prisoners. Our demands were clear, that the prisoners and captives, chief among them Nasser Abu Hamid and Walid Daqa, be released in exchange for Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed."