By: Elana R. Roth

NETANYA, Israel        

A life-size poster of Gilad Shalit's body is picketed on the top of an army tank replica parked outside Hadrim Prison. The picture was taken from the most recent blurry video image Hamas sent Israel months ago. This poster stands juxtaposed next to a flag of Shalit before he was capture by Hamas in 2006, making Shalit look almost unrecognizable with his now emaciated and colorless body still wearing his Israeli army uniform. Yet, this image is the only contact, and more importantly, proof of life, that terrorists of Hamas have granted Shalit's parents since his abduction.
To the Israeli protesters standing in outside the prison, Shalit is only one reminder of the vast inequality in the treatment of Israeli prisoners compared to Palestinian prisoners. Just yards away inside the Hadrim Prison, Arab prisoners have full visitation rights of their family members who often choose to visit the prison on a regular basis. Family visitation rights are an extra bonus granted by Israel that exceeds the mandatory U.N. visitation laws. According to the U.N., prisoners are only required to have a once a week visitation by a lawyer and a Red Cross representative. Shalit receives neither.