Ahamd Bahar said in statement: “A number of Zionist groups are allocating money to fund the assassination plot of freed Palestinian prisoners.” He added that some extremist members of the Israeli Knesset were also encouraging the assassinations.

“The Zionist threats against freed prisoners should not be taken lightly … there is ongoing incitement fanned by fundamentalist members of Knesset and occupiers who are against the released detainees, and that proves that Israel intends to target those prisoners in the coming stage”.

He called on the prisoners to remain on alert, especially in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

On Sunday, Mahmoud Al-Zahar, a senior Hamas leader, also warned that the Israeli government poses a threat to kill prisoners freed under the swap deal.

He described the threats as an attempt to satisfy the Israeli public.

According to him, Israel is “making these threats in an attempt to lighten the heavy price they paid for agreeing to free over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.”

Al-Zahar said Hamas would insure that Egypt chooses high profile prisoners, not “thieves and criminals” in the second stage. The deal was broadly supported by the Israeli public but provoked fierce debate over the release of those jailed for attacks against Israelis.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told local media that if any of the freed Palestinian prisoners returned to “terrorism”, they would “do so at their own risk.”

On Saturday, deputy commander of Hamas’ armed wing Ahmed A-Jaabari said that Al-Qassam brigades would continue plans to capture Israeli soldiers “until all Palestinians prisoners were freed from Israeli occupation jails.”