Hamas film to portray capture of Shalit

GAZA, Oct. 18 (UPI) -- A film about the capture of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit was scheduled for broadcast on Hamas television in Gaza Thursday night, Hamas officials said.

A preview of the feature-length film was released earlier by Izz-adin al-Qassam, the military wing of Hamas, Israeli broadcaster Arutz Sheva reported.

The film reportedly includes both actual footage recorded at the time of Shalit's 2006 kidnapping by Hamas and dramatic recreations, and to reveal how the group was able to capture the soldier, Hamas said.

Shalit was released one year ago Thursday as part of a prisoner exchange in which more than 1,000 Palestinians held by Israel were released in exchange for him.

"The Shalit deal was one of the biggest achievements of the Palestinian resistance," said Taher al-Nunu, a spokesman for Gaza's Hamas government. "It proves (capturing soldiers) is the best way to have prisoners released and put pressure on the Zionist occupation."

Al-Nunu said Hamas was "too easy" on Israel in negotiating for Shalit's release. Next time Hamas would demand the release of all terrorists Israel refused to free in the Shalit deal, he said.

Some 18 released Palestinians have been allowed to return to their homes in parts of the West Bank controlled by the Palestinian Authority in violation of the exchange agreement, the newspaper said. They were to have been kept in Gaza.