Israel prefers to release Palestinian prisoners to the Gaza Strip rather than the West Bank as part of its swap with Hamas in exchange for abducted Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit, Army Radio reported on Thursday.
| Luxembourg would be even better. Or Peru. |
| Samoa. They wouldn't last long. |
Defense officials fear that freeing the jailed militants into the West Bank could weaken Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and strengthen Hamas in Fatah territory, the radio said.
Israel also wants the authority to determine which of the prisoners will be released to Gaza and which to the West Bank, the radio said. Israel was to present Egyptian mediators in Cairo on Thursday with new formulas that it hopes will result in progress in the case of Shalit, who has been held captive by Hamas in the Gaza Strip since June 2006. |