False rumors of Shalit release do not faze family and friends

The family of captive Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit and activists working for his release were forced to contend on Wednesday with a wave of unsubstantiated rumors that Gilad had been released in the course of the IDF operation in Gaza.

Family members and members of Friends of Gilad Shalit said they had no new information regarding the soldier's fate.

Brig. Gen. (res.) Hezi Meshita, Friends of Gilad Shalit coordinator, said of the rumors, "I wish they were true."

Friends of Gilad Shalit issued a statement on Wednesday that it remained firm that any cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas must call for Shalit's release.

Also on Wednesday, a demonstration held in Tel Aviv by thousands of youths demanded such a cease-fire provision.

Noam Shalit, Gilad's father, said the assembled crowd "represent a clear position: that it is unacceptable to today's youth that an entire nation and its leaders are unable to free Gilad."

Guy Eliasaf, a friend of the captive soldier, said, "we are fighting in the south, and Gilad probably hears the bombs and thinks the end [to his captivity] is near. The moment the bombing stops, he will understand he has been left behind."