Hamas denied on Monday that any talks about the release of Israeli soldiers captured in the Gaza Strip had taken place, Spokesman Ismail Ridwan said.

Ridwan said that Hamas’ condition to start any talks regarding the missing Israeli soldiers is the release of all prisoners who were freed under a prisoner exchange deal in 2011 and were later incarcerated again, reported Quds Press.

His remarks came during a sit-in organised in Gaza in solidarity with the prisoner Nael al-Barghouti, who spent 35 consecutive years in Israeli jails before he was released under the deal and then rearrested.

“This is a final decision,” he said, calling for all other Palestinian factions to take measures to free the Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.

He also warned the Israeli authorities regarding the continuous raids and violations against worshipers at Al-Aqsa Mosque.

He warned that the violations against this holy site could trigger a regional conflict, noting that the Palestinian factions would never remain silent for too long regarding these violations.

Source: middleeastmonitor.com