Speculation was rife in Israel and the Palestinian areas Thursday that a prisoner swap, which would see hundreds of Palestinian prisoners exchanged for an Israeli soldier held in the Gaza Strip for more than three years, was imminent, dpa reported. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was set to discuss the issue at a meeting in Berlin Thursday with Chancellor Angela Merkel and receive an update on German efforts to mediate a possible swap. Israel soldier Gilad Shalit was captured on June 25, 2006 in an early-morning cross-border raid by three Palestinian militant groups launched from the Gaza Strip. Hamas, which is holding him, is demanding the release of hundreds of Palestinians from Israeli prisons in exchange. Negotiations to effect a prisoner swap have so far floundered, but on Wednesday night, following reports that a newspaper editor considered close to Hamas said that "the prisoner exchange deal is drawing to an end." Mustafa Sawaf, editor of the Palestine Now newspaper, said the deal was being held up not over the core of the deal but rather over tactical matters, such as the question of whether all the prisoners would be released to their homes or if some of them would be deported to Gaza or overseas. There was no official Israeli reaction to Sawaf's claim, but Minister of Trade and Industry Benjamin Ben-Eliezer told Israel Army Radio that he was hopeful Shalit would be released soon. "For the first time, I have the feeling that this journey is going to end, I hope with all my heart, well, and I hope that very soon we will see Gilad Shalit at home," he said. -- SPA
