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13:53 GMT
PARIS, March 19 (KUNA) -- The French government on Thursday urged Israel again to free certain categories of Palestinian prisoners specifically women and children and elected officials.
Answering questions about the latest Israeli arrests of Palestinian deputies from the Hamas party in the West Bank earlier today, Foreign Ministry spokesman Eric Chevallier said "the French position of principle on the arrest of Palestinian elected officials is known." The European Union and France reiterate their call for the release of women, juveniles and all elected Palestinian officials currently being held in Israeli prisons, he noted.
Chevallier said he had no knowledge of Israeli plans to impose harsher conditions on Palestinian prisoners by restricting visits, education, money transfers and entertainment like television, in addition to limiting contact between prisoners.
"We recall our attachment, if the situation justifies it, to the full respect by Israel of its international obligations in line with the Fourth Geneva Convention concerning the treatment and detention conditions of Palestinian prisoners," the French official indicated.
He also said that France today was thinking of the Franco-Israeli national Gilad Shalit, who was captured by Hamas in a skirmish between Israeli troops and Palestinian militants over in 2006.
Shalit, who has been one of the thorny issues in talks on a prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas, has been held by the Palestinian group for almost 1,000 days now. (end) jk.hb KUNA 191653 Mar 09NNNN