Thaindian News

Jerusalem, June 24 (IANS) Israel has decided to revoke the “privileges” of the Palestinians detained in its prisons, Xinhua reported Friday.

On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, during the closing event at the presidential conference in Jerusalem, announced that he was working in this direction.

“I have decided to change Israel’s policy toward terrorists sitting in our jails,” Netanyahu said

Israel regards Palestinian militants as “terrorists,” accusing them of involvement in violent attacks against Israeli civilians.

Netanyahu said he was committed to uphold Israeli laws, as well as international laws and conventions but nothing beyond that, which was why a series of steps meant to toughen the living conditions of jailed Palestinian militants would be taken.

The Israeli prime minister revealed that he was working to put an end to the “absurd practice” of allowing the prisoners, many of whom were said to be former members of militant groups in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, to earn advanced academic degrees while in prison.

He, however, refused to further disclose the nature of the planned steps.

Netanyahu’s comment, the first of its kind, follows an announcement made earlier in the day by Hamas that it would not allow the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to visit Israel Defence Forces soldier Gilad Shalit, who was captured in a cross-border raid in 2006 and is thought to be held in Gaza.

Negotiations between Israel and Hamas, mainly via the German mediation, have hit a dead end. Israel is reportedly considering to release some 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Shalit.