Two more Jewish nationalist prisoners have begun a hunger strike about their conditions, while Minister Eli Yishai of Shas and a former Shabak official write letters of protest in support of the prisoners.

It was announced at a press conference in Jerusalem on Wednesday morning that two additional Jewish nationalist prisoners had begun a hunger strike, joining Ofer Gamliel, who started his strike six weeks ago.

The prisoners are demanding an end to the discrimination against them, reflected in the fact that they are not permitted any vacation time at all, while Arab prisoners are released periodically. In addition, their requests for parole or reduction of sentences are ignored, while Arab murderers and other terrorists are released em-masse in "goodwill" gestures.

In Support of the Prisoners: Minister Yishai and ex-Shabak Official

Shas political leader Eli Yishai, the Minister of Industry and Trade, sent a letter to President Shimon Peres, demanding that the Jewish nationalist prisoners be released.

Similarly, a former official of the General Security Service (Shabak), the body which is behind the mistreatment of the prisoners, writes that the situation is absurd.

The ex-Shabak man's letter to Shabak Chief Yuval Diskin, sent two months ago, states:

The Israeli government's decision to free terrorist murderers passes quietly as if it's normal and routine that those who murder Jews should get out of prison after a few years as part of some goodwill gesture. But if we could just pick up our heads out of this distorted world of ours, we would grasp just how absurd and insane this situation is.

A brainwashing is going on here, causing many of us to lose our moral conscience. Abominable terrorists are low-level criminals and subhuman murderers by any standard. They are responsible for the slaughter of hundreds of men, women and children. How can their release even be considered???

In Israeli prison we also have some Jewish prisoners who, at least according to the court rulings, do not have blood on their hands. With all the gestures that Israel has made and will make to Abu Mazen, a 'gesture' towards the families of the Jewish prisoners was not even considered.

Minister Yishai's letter to Peres, sent three weeks ago, reads as follows:
I ask you to consider the case of the prisoner Ofer Gamliel, who is serving [a 15-year sentence] for his conviction of attempted manslaughter.

For a long while now, I have been trying to receive answers from various elements, such as the Public Security Ministry and the Prime Minister's Office, as to why Ofer Gamliel and his friends are not allowed to receive vacations from prison. The answers I have received are not sufficient for me.

We are in a period in which the State of Israel has released hundreds of terrorists, some of them with blood on their hands. In some of the cases, the security elements recommended that they not be released - and despite this, the Government of Israel freed them all.

Honorable President, I turn to you as the supreme authority on the matter of release of prisoners and as one who has recently pardoned security prisoners among the enemies of the State of Israel, and I ask you to act on behalf of the Jewish security prisoners."