Palestinian factions have agreed on a deal to solve the crisis regarding captured Israeli soldier Cpl. Gilad Shalit, the London-based Al-Hayyat reported.
Under the deal, which was conveyed to Israel through Egyptian mediators, Shalit would be released in exchange for the release of some prisoners in Israeli jails, and an Israeli guarantee that more would be released at a later date.
Israel would also be required to end its military operations in Gaza, while Palestinians would stop firing rockets from Gaza onto Israeli communities.
Israel has until now rejected the idea of a prisoner exchange to release Shalit. “Informed sources” said Israel received the initiative and had not yet responded, according to Al-Hayyat.
There were reports that a similar deal, not including Shalit’s release, was hammered out between Palestinian armed factions and Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud ‘Abbas over the weekend, but representatives of these factions later denied that an agreement was reached.
The Israeli army has been operating in Gaza since two soldiers were killed and Shalit was abducted on June 25 on the Gazan border. Six Palestinians were killed in Beit Lahia in Gaza on Monday in an Israeli aerial attack. Israel is trying to secure Shalit’s release and to crack down on cells that are launching Qassam rockets into Israel.
Meanwhile, senior Hamas member Muhammad Nazzal said Shalit’s captors must reach a prisoner exchange deal soon.
Nazzal told Reuters that Hizbullah could hold onto their Israeli captives for years, but that the Palestinians could not keep a soldier captive in Gaza for a long time because his whereabouts would soon be revealed.