Newly released Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi called on captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit -- and "all political prisoners" -- to remain strong.
When asked in an exclusive telephone interview with Haaretz Friday if she had a message for the soldier held in Gaza since June 2006, Suu Kyi, who was released earlier this month after spending more than two decades under house
arrest, said, "I would like to send a message to all political prisoners all over the world . Keep strong and don't forget that there are many, many
people who have you in their hearts and in their minds and would do whatever they can for your release."
Shalit was captured in a cross-border raid near the Gaza Strip and has been held incommunicado ever since.
Suu Kyi also commented on Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
"I just wonder whether they could not sit down and think that it would be so much nicer if they could be friends," she said. "It seems a very simple thought, but sometimes great things begin with very simple thoughts."