VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, Jul 15, 2008 (MARKET WIRE via COMTEX) --
International Tower Hill Mines Ltd. ("ITH" or the "Company") - (TSX
VENTURE: ITH)(AMEX: THM)(FRANKFURT: IW9) announces that, following
review and approval by the Company's Compensation Committee, the
Board of Directors has amended the expiry dates and exercise prices
of an aggregate of 3,675,000 outstanding incentive stock options to
extend the expiry date for up to eighteen months, such that all such
options (which were originally granted for a period of two years and
which have expiry dates ranging from January 26, 2009 to May 23,
2009) will now expire on July 16, 2010; and to reduce the exercise
prices (which currently range from CAD 2.70 to 2.95, with a weighted
average exercise price of CAD 2.75) to CAD 1.75. An aggregate of
2,405,000 of these options are held by insiders and, in accordance
with the requirements of the TSX Venture Exchange's policies, the
amendments to such options are subject to the approval of the
Company's "disinterested" shareholders. Accordingly, approval to the
amendments to these insider options will be sought at the 2008 annual
general meeting of the shareholders of ITH to be held on Tuesday,
October 21, 2008.

The Board of Directors believe that the stock option repricing is
justified, as current management has been working steadily to deliver
on its promise to create shareholder value (having identified
significant inferred gold resources and currently pushing forward
with an aggressive exploration programs to increase those resources
and identify additional ones) but the results, and the value thereby
created, are not being appropriately recognized in the current market
or reflected in the Company's share price through no fault of
management. The Directors are therefore of the view that the
resetting of the exercise price of these options will restore the
appropriate incentive to management that the grant of stock options
is intended to provide.

About International Tower Hill Mines Ltd.

International Tower Hill Mines Ltd. is a resource exploration
company, focused in Alaska and Nevada, which controls a number of
exploration projects representing a spectrum of early stage to
advanced gold and base metal discoveries. The Company is aggressively
pursuing a major new gold discovery at its 100% owned Livengood
project, which has an initial 43-101 inferred resource of 88 million
tonnes at an average grade of 0.71 g/t (2.0 million ounces of gold at
a cutoff of 0.5 g/t). ITH is committed to building shareholder value
through new discoveries while maintaining a majority interest in its
holdings, thereby giving its shareholders the maximum value for their
investment.

On behalf of INTERNATIONAL TOWER HILL MINES LTD.

Jeffrey A. Pontius, President and Chief Executive Officer

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 27E of the
Exchange Act. Such statements include, without limitation, statements
regarding the anticipated content, commencement and cost of
exploration programs, anticipated exploration program results, the
discovery and delineation of mineral deposits/resources/reserves, the
potential for a significant expansion of the estimated Livengood
resources, business and financing plans and business trends.
Information concerning mineral resource estimates also may be deemed
to be forward-looking statements in that it reflects a prediction of
the mineralization that would be encountered if a mineral deposit
were developed and mined. Although the Company believes that such
statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such
expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are
typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate,
intend, estimate, postulate and similar expressions, or are those,
which, by their nature, refer to future events. The Company cautions
investors that any forward-looking statements by the Company are not
guarantees of future results or performance, and that actual results
may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements as a
result of various factors, including, but not limited to, variations
in the nature, quality and quantity of any mineral deposits that may
be located, the Company's inability to obtain any necessary permits,
consents or authorizations required for its activities, the inability
of the Company to obtain assay results in a timely manner due to
laboratory workload, the Company's inability to produce minerals from
its properties successfully or profitably, to continue its projected
growth, to raise the necessary capital or to be fully able to
implement its business strategies, including those detailed above,
and other risks and uncertainties disclosed in the Company's annual
report on Form 20-F filed with the United States Securities and
Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), and other information released by
the Company and filed with the appropriate regulatory agencies
(including its most recent Management Discussion and Analysis). All
of the Company's Canadian public disclosure filings may be accessed
via www.sedar.com and its US disclosure filings at www.sec.gov and
readers are urged to review these materials, including the technical
reports filed with respect to the Company's mineral properties.

This press release is not, and is not to be construed in any way as,
an offer to buy or sell securities in the United States.

NR08-16

The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept
responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the contents of this
press release, which has been prepared by management.

Contacts:
International Tower Hill Mines Ltd.
Quentin Mai
Vice-President - Corporate Communications
Toll Free: 1-888-770-7488 or (604) 683-6332
(604) 408-7499 (FAX)
Email: qmai@internationaltowerhill.com
Website:  www.ITHmines.com

SOURCE: International Tower Hill Mines Ltd.

mailto:qmai@internationaltowerhill.com
 http://www.ITHmines.com