RAMALLAH, West Bank — Hamas’ military wing has published for the first time information and images about the operation that captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit on June 25, 2006. The publication also includes information about his detention, which extended until Oct. 18, 2011, when he was released in the first phase of a prisoner exchange known as the Shalit deal.
Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades released the information between Dec. 29 and Jan. 4, announcing the names of five of its now-dead members who participated in Shalit’s detention. The announcement included a brief introduction about each of the members, including previously unreleased photos of them with Shalit.
The group also released a video about its Shadow Unit, which al-Qassam Brigades established 10 years ago. The brigades described this group as one of its most secret units, tasked with securing the Israeli prisoners captured by al-Qassam Brigades and keeping them hidden to frustrate Israel’s efforts to recover them.
The unit was revealed after the last member of the group, Abdul Rahman al-Mubasher, died Dec. 28 when a resistance tunnel he was working in collapsed. Sami al-Hamaide, another member of the unit, died in 2008, and member Abdullah Labad died in 2011 along with his brother. As for Khaled Abu Bakra, he died in a tunnel in 2013, accompanied by the fifth member, Mohammad Daoud.
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