Gilad Shalit, shortly after joining IDF
Reproduction photo: Hagai Aharon
Shalit's parents receive his staff sergeant ranks
Aviva and Noam Shalit take part in military ceremony honoring kidnapped soldier's friends, who will be released from IDF this summer
Several months before their release from the Israel Defense Forces, the friends of kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit received their staff sergeant ranks this week.
The moving ceremony honoring the soldiers of the armored forces' 71st regiment, enlisted in July 2005, was held in Latrun.
Shalit's parents, Aviva and Noam, received the ranks on behalf of their son. Shalit has been held in captivity in the Gaza Strip since July 25, 2006.
Khaled Mashaal:
In interview to Sky News, Hamas chief says Israeli captive alive and being treated 'in a good way,' claims Israel treating Palestinian prisoners badly
Shalit was a corporal when he was kidnapped by Hamas in a terrorist attack. After the kidnapping, his fellow soldiers were granted sergeant ranks. At the time, IDF officials believed that Shalit would be freed from captivity shortly afterwards, but since then the negotiations for his release have reached a deadlock and it is unclear when he will return home. His friends will be released from the IDF this summer.
Hamas politburo chief Khaled Mashaal recently blamed Israel for the failure of the negotiations for Shalit's release. According to Mashaal, the Jewish state rejected the names of most of the prisoners Hamas demanded to see released as part of a prisoner swap deal.
"Israel has refused to release prisoners sentenced to long jail terms, and for the time being the negotiations on Shalit are almost frozen," he said.
Noam Shalit responded to Mashaal's claims with resentment. Talking to Ynet, he said that Hamas was the one thwarting the talks.
"The negotiations for Gilad's release were halted due to disagreements between Hamas in Gaza and Hamas in Damascus. There is an internal conflict in the organization.
"At the moment, Mashaal is the one unwilling to resume the negotiations, and I say this following information I received from reliable sources on the Israeli side, who have been working for Shalit's release for a long time now."
