Ghoul: IOA exposed its ugly image

Minister of prisoners in Gaza Mohammed Faraj Al-Ghoul on Wednesday charged that the Israeli occupation authority (IOA) had signed on its “Nazism and racist fascism” when it approved the so-called Shalit law.

Ghoul told El-Bayan website that the IOA was behaving like a state above the law and above accountability.

The minister said that the IOA preliminary approval of the Shalit law had exposed its “ugly image” in legitimizing new crimes against Palestinian prisoners.

“The IOA today announces its failure to pressure Palestinian resistance to offer concessions in the prisoners’ exchange deal, Jerusalem, refugees and their right of return,” he elaborated.

Ghoul charged that the IOA was using prisoners as “hostages” and a “pressure card” against Palestinian resistance, adding that the IOA had previously tried such practices against the prisoners and failed because of their strong determination.

The minister appealed to all Arab and international human rights groups to act and save the “heroic prisoners” who are facing slow death in IOA jails.

For their part, the Hamas prisoners said in a statement on Wednesday that the Israeli government’s decision to tighten punitive measures against Hamas prisoners would not bear fruit and would not break the prisoners’ resoluteness.

They said that the decision reflects the IOA state of weakness and bankruptcy after failing to bring back their captured soldier, adding that the step was an attempt to beautify the image of the government before the Zionist public opinion and to show as if it cared about life of their soldiers.

The prisoners asked the captors of Shalit to stick to their demands and not to give up on them regardless of IOA decisions and measures.

The Israeli parliament earlier on Wednesday approved the Shalit law in the preliminary reading with a majority of 52 against 10 opposing it.

The law stipulates depriving Palestinian prisoners of family visits, education, newspapers, TV, and isolating them for indefinite periods.