Head of Hamas Political Bureau Ismail Haniyeh said on Tuesday that Israeli occupation will pay the price for arresting Palestinians.

During an open satellite wave organised by the Prisoner’s Information Office, Haniyeh said: “We will liberate all of our prisoners and the day when the Israeli occupation pays the price for arresting Palestinians will come sooner or later.”

Addressing the veteran Palestinian prisoners from all the Palestinian factions, he said: "We send our greetings to all the veteran Palestinian prisoners inside the Israeli jails on top of them Nael al-Bargouti."

He stressed: “Releasing our Palestinian prisoners currently inside Israeli jails is our top priority and we will exert all efforts to achieve their long awaited freedom.”

Haniyeh went on to assure the prisoners that the Palestinian resistance has pledged to free them from the Israeli prisons saying: “We are ready to start negotiations with a third party to secure a prisoner exchange deal with the Israeli occupation."

In 2011, Hamas was able to release more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the Israeli soldier, Jilad Shalit, who was captured by Hamas fighters at one of the Israeli military bases adjacent to the Gaza Strip.

Palestinians on Tuesday marked the 44th anniversary of Palestinian Prisoners' Day through different social media campaigns and media coverage to highlight the suffering of around 7,000 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, 350 of them are children and 62 are women.