1. Gilad Shalit is a former MIA soldier of the Israel Defense Forces who, on 25 June 2006, was captured by Palestinian militants in a cross-border raid via tunnels near the Israeli border.
60 Facts About Gilad Shalit
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Several human rights organizations criticized this position, asserting that the conditions of Gilad Shalit's confinement were in violation of international humanitarian law.
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Gilad Shalit was captured near the Kerem Shalom crossing in Israel and was held by Hamas at an undisclosed location within the Gaza Strip.
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On 18 October 2011, Gilad Shalit was eventually released in a negotiated agreement, securing his freedom after more than five years in isolation and captivity.
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Gilad Shalit became the first Israeli soldier to be captured by Palestinian militants since the incident involving Nachshon Wachsman in 1994.
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Gilad Shalit held the rank of Corporal in the IDF's Armor Corps at the time of his capture, and he was promoted to Sergeant, Staff Sergeant, and Sergeant First Class just before his release.
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Gilad Shalit holds dual Israeli and French citizenship, the latter via his grandmother.
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Gilad Shalit was born on 28 August 1986 in Nahariya, Israel, to Noam and Aviva Gilad Shalit.
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Gilad Shalit has an older brother and a younger sister.
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Gilad Shalit was raised from in Mitzpe Hila in the Western Galilee.
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Gilad Shalit graduated with distinction from Manor Kabri High School.
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Gilad Shalit suffered a broken left hand and a light shoulder wound, and the militants captured him and took him via a tunnel into Gaza.
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Gilad Shalit's captors issued a statement the following day, offering information on Gilad Shalit if Israel were to agree to release all female Palestinian prisoners and all Palestinian prisoners under the age of 18.
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Gilad Shalit was the first Israeli soldier captured by Palestinians since Nachshon Wachsman, in 1994.
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Israel's minister of justice, Haim Ramon, added that Gilad Shalit was being held in southern Gaza, specifically.
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Prime Minister Ehud Olmert immediately ruled out negotiations with Gilad Shalit's captors, demanding his unconditional release.
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In September 2006, Egyptian mediators received a letter in which Gilad Shalit wrote that he was alive and well.
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In November 2006, Hamas leader Khaled Mashal indicated that Gilad Shalit was alive and in good health.
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Gilad Shalit is being treated in accordance with Islamic values regulating the treatment of prisoners of war.
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On 7 April 2007, it was reported that Gilad Shalit's captors had transferred to Israel, through Egyptian mediators, a list of Palestinian prisoners they wanted freed.
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Gilad Shalit said that his medical condition was deteriorating, and that he required immediate and lengthy hospitalization.
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Noam Gilad Shalit said that the fact that Carter was not considered pro-Israel could be beneficial in securing his son's release.
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On 12 August 2008, Hamas said that it was suspending talks on Gilad Shalit's release, demanding a complete lifting of the Israeli siege.
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On 11 May 2010, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev called for Gilad Shalit to be freed "as soon as possible".
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Gilad Shalit made the call while meeting Hamas leaders in Damascus, Syria.
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Gilad Shalit's father had blamed the US for blocking talks on his son's release.
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Tweets for Gilad Shalit ranged from the demand "Free Gilad Shalit", to requests for international supervision of the case.
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In several incidents during 2009, leaders of the campaign to free Gilad Shalit demonstrated at the prisons in which Palestinian detainees were held, preventing visits by Palestinian prisoners' families.
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In early December 2008, during a Hamas rally in Gaza City to mark 21 years since its founding, a Hamas member masquerading as Gilad Shalit was paraded by Hamas militia members.
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At the start of the Gaza War, Hamas claimed Gilad Shalit had been wounded by Israeli fire.
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On 16 March 2009, it was reported that a prisoner-swap deal to gain Gilad Shalit's release was close, and the negotiation team was urged to wrap up the deal.
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In July 2009, Hamas TV in Gaza broadcast a short animated movie that depicted Gilad Shalit chained to a jail cell wall, pleading with a Palestinian boy to be set free.
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Gilad Shalit told the committee that his son has lived without human rights for three years, and that no one, including the Red Cross, knows what happened to him or has paid him a visit.
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On 30 September 2009, Israel announced that it would release 20 female Palestinian prisoners in exchange for a video proving Gilad Shalit was still alive.
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Gilad Shalit addressed Netanyahu and his parents, and reminisced about times he spent with his family.
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In late June 2010, Gilad Shalit's parents organized a march from Gilad Shalit's hometown to the Prime Minister's residence in Jerusalem and were joined by 10,000 people.
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Gilad Shalit's parents stated that they would not go home until he was freed.
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Hamas leaders said the informer maintained relationships with top Hamas commanders in order to learn where Gilad Shalit was being held.
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Five years and four months after Gilad Shalit was captured by Palestinian militants in southern Israel, a deal was reached between Israel and Hamas to release Gilad Shalit in exchange for 1,027 Palestinian and Israeli Arab prisoners.
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On 18 October 2011, Gilad Shalit was returned to Israel as part of the agreement with Hamas.
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France's President Nicolas Sarkozy sent a congratulatory letter to Gilad Shalit, mentioning France's role in pressuring Hamas to release him.
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In March 2013, the Jerusalem Post released information that Gilad Shalit conveyed to IDF investigators after his release.
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Only a small group of militants knew where Gilad Shalit was being held, and most of them had been killed in IDF operations.
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Shortly after the abduction, locating Gilad Shalit became a top priority of Israeli intelligence, which soon received false information that he was being held in a fenced private residence on the outskirts of Gaza City.
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In June 2007, Israeli media, citing Hamas sources, reported that Gilad Shalit was being held in the basement of a booby-trapped building near Rafah in Gaza, and was being cared for by two guards with whom he had established a cordial relationship.
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Gilad Shalit's living quarters were described as a two-room underground store with enough supplies for two weeks, accessible down a ladder through a 15-meter-deep shaft lined with explosives.
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In October 2009, Asharq Al-Awsat reported that a senior Israeli defense official had told the newspaper that Israel knew exactly where Gilad Shalit was being held and was keeping the location under constant surveillance.
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In June 2011, the Kuwaiti newspaper Al Jarida reported that Gilad Shalit had been transferred to a secret and secure location in Egypt ahead of an expected final deal.
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The newspaper quoted sources as saying that Gilad Shalit had been accompanied by Hamas commanders Ahmed Jabari and Mahmoud al-Zahar.
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Gilad Shalit stated that he had some good things such as television, radio, food, and opportunities to play checkers and dominos with the guards.
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Gilad Shalit stated that they "did not abuse [him] too much".
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Gilad Shalit stated that he kept a regular schedule such as getting up and going to bed at the same time every day, learned some Arabic, and chatted with his captors about sports.
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An ICRC representative said that under international humanitarian law Gilad Shalit is entitled to regular and unconditional contacts with his family.
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Human Rights Watch stated that Hamas authorities were obligated by the laws of war to allow Gilad Shalit to correspond with his family, and noted that three letters and a voice recording cannot be counted as regular correspondence.
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HRW called for him to receive visits from the ICRC, and said that the prolonged incommunicado detention of Gilad Shalit was cruel and inhumane and amounted to torture.
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At the time of his abduction, Gilad Shalit held the rank of corporal, but he was promoted to sergeant during his captivity.
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Gilad Shalit became a subject of media attention, often being photographed with public figures at sports and other events.
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In June 2012, Gilad Shalit, known for his enthusiasm for sports and his support for Maccabi Tel Aviv BC, secured employment as a sports reporter for Yedioth Ahronoth, where he contributed a regular column covering Israeli and European basketball.
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In February 2020, Gilad Shalit became engaged to his girlfriend of a year and a half, Nitzan Shabbat.
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Gilad Shalit has been named an honorary citizen by several cities, including Paris, Raincy, Rome, Miami, New Orleans, Baltimore, and Pittsburgh.