Der Spiegel: Netanyahu Requested German Mediation in Shalit Case

The German magazine Der Spiegel is reporting that German mediators are working to put together a deal between Israel and Hamas that would see the repatriation of captured soldier Gilad Shalit and the release of hundreds of Hamas members being held by Israel. The magazine says that it was the Israelis who requested German mediation. The Germans have taken this role on before, most recently in the case of the two soldiers captured by Hizbullah, the trigger behind the 2006 war in Lebanon. Der Spiegel lays out a deal almost identical to the framework Israel’s previous government was working with – 450 Hamas prisoners for Shalit – but adds a goodwill gesture of additional releases after the deal is concluded. The magazine says Hamas has three days in which to respond to the offer. Israeli officials, meanwhile, have told an Arabic-language newspaper based in London that rumors of an imminent deal are being spread by Hamas in an effort to embarrass Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu if the deal fails to close.