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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan | |
| Another Israel-Egypt swap in works? | |
| 2011-10-29 | |
| Three prisoner swaps in one month? Bedouin Israeli Ouda Tarabin, who has been imprisoned in Egypt for 11 years now, will be returning to Israel next month as part of a prisoner swap with Israel, Kuwaiti daily al-Jarida reported Saturday. According to a senior Egyptian official, Tarabin will be released after the Feast of Sacrifice, a Muslim holiday that will be celebrated in mid-November this year. The swap, which is expected to resemble the recent Ilan Grapel deal, will see Tarabin released from prison in exchange for Egyptian inmates held in Israel. According to the same source, this time the Jewish state will release "political prisoners" rather than detainees held for drug or weapon smuggling offences. The Egyptian official did not say how many prisoners will be freed by Israel in the framework of the swap, but stressed that Cairo is engaging in negotiations in order to "gain the greatest profits." He hinted that "additional spies" may be discovered in Egyptian jails and prompt further negotiations.
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| Posted by:tipper |