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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Israel denies prisoner swap deal with Hamas |
| 2009-03-28 |
| Tel Aviv denies reports that Gilad Shalit will be released this weekend saying that it has not reached a prisoner swap deal with Hamas. An anonymous Hamas representative in Cairo talking to a leading Arabic-language daily said on Friday that a deal may come up within the next 24 hours while Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's office said that no progress has been achieved in the indirect negotiations on a possible prisoner swap. Hamas demands the release of over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, including 450 specifically named ones, in return for the freedom of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit who was captured in 2006. The next 24 hours could prove decisive in the indirect talks between Israeli and Hamas representatives in Cairo, the unidentified Hamas politician told al-Hayat. The paper said a deal may be 'imminent'. Israel wants Hamas to exclude certain prisoners Tel Aviv refuses to free and present a new list to Egyptian mediators. Among the 450 identified prisoners on Hamas' list, Israel has reportedly agreed to free only 320 claiming it would not release prisoners who were involved in suicide bombings and other deadly attacks against Israelis. On Thursday, Egypt's official MENA news agency cited an unnamed Egyptian official as saying that the pace of negotiations has accelerated in recent days. Talks broke down last week, reportedly after Hamas demanded the release of some 1,400 Palestinians jailed in Israel and insisted on selecting the names of the first 450 to be released. However, on Friday, al-Hayat's Hamas source said both sides were showing 'more flexibility' on the issue of Palestinian prisoners on Israel's 'black list'. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #4 Waiting for a dumb fuck remark from a local. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2009-03-28 14:40 |
| #3 I don't think Hamas has said they would return him in a living state. |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2009-03-28 10:20 |
| #2 Good deal for Hamas, if they hadn't already murdered Shalit. |
| Posted by: DMFD 2009-03-28 10:15 |
| #1 Trying to make "Hamas reality" come true again. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2009-03-28 07:46 |