Israel is no longer allowing relatives to visit jailed Hamas terrorists, the Gaza-based terror organization claimed on Thursday.
Abd El-Rahman Shadid, who heads up Hamas’ bureau of prisoner affairs, declared in a written statement to Arab journalists that Israel had revoked the visitation rights of jailed terrorists affiliated with the Hamas terror group.
According to Shadid, the decision to halt visits to jailed Hamas terrorists is tied to Israeli efforts to bring about the return of two murdered IDF soldiers – Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin – whose bodies have been held by Hamas since 2014.
“It appears that this decision comes after the pressure was put on Hamas with regards to the captive soldiers it is holding, and it is a response to the calls by the soldiers’ families who called for the [Hamas] organization’s prisoners to be punished in Israeli prisons.”
On Wednesday, a senior Hamas official denied the organization was conducting negotiations with Israel for the release of soldiers’ remains, despite repeated calls by Israel for talks on the issue.
The Hamas terror group claimed that the freezing of visits to jailed terrorists was an act of “war against prisoners”, Channel 10 reported, warning that Israel would pay a price for the decision.
“Hamas will not allow this punishment [of jailed terrorists]; there will be a price to pay.”
The bereaved Oron Shaul praised the move to end visitation rights for Hamas terrorists.
“This is the right move, and we hope that its purpose is the return of Oron as soon as possible from Hamas captivity.”