Gilad Shalit receives 1st letter from family

Kidnapped soldier's father informed that letter handed to Syrian President Assad by French President Sarokozy has been delivered to captive held by Hamas in Gaza for more than two years. 'This made us happy,' Noam Shalit tells Ynet

Sharon Roffe-Ofir |Published: 10.24.08 , 09:48

After more than two years in captivity, kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit has finally received a letter from home. The French presidential palace recently informed Noam Shalit that the letter he wrote to his son has reached its destination, the captive's father told Ynet on Friday.

"We are no longer so excited about this. We prefer to look forward," he said.

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The Shalit family gave the letter to French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who handed it to Syrian President Bashar Assad during a visit to Damascus. The letter was then turned over to Hamas politburo chief Khaled Mashaal, who promised to deliver it to the kidnapped soldier.

"I don't know about his condition, but it's still something he receives from home after more than two years. And yes, this did make us happy," Noam Shalit said.

Asked whether France may serve as a channel for information which would advance the negotiations for his son's release, Shalit said, "I don't deal with speculations, but this letter is not meant to lead to his release."

The family had tried to deliver letters to the soldier through the Red Cross in the past, but Hamas refused to accept them. Shalit's abductors did give him a pair of eyeglasses sent by his father.

Speaking to reporters in France on Tuesday, Noam Shalit called for his son’s release and pleaded with his captors in Gaza to show proof that he is still alive.

He called on French citizens to mobilize for Gilad with the same passion that they showed for Ingrid Betancourt, a French-Colombian former hostage whose kidnapping in Colombia became a cause celebre in France.

“Like you did for Ingrid Betancourt, I ask you to mobilize for my son who also has French nationality,” Shalit said at a news conference organized by a French support committee for Shalit.

Betancourt, a former Colombian presidential candidate who also has French citizenship, was rescued by the Colombian army in July after being held in the jungle by the leftist FARC guerrilla for more than six years.