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Israel: No deal reached on release of captured soldier
Fri. March 23, 2007 09:24 am.- By Zainab Osman. -
(SomaliNet) Sources of the Israel government have denied that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert had reached an agreement with the Palestinians on the release of captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, Army Radio reported on Friday.
Palestinian National Authority Chairman Mahmood Abbas told Israel reporters on Thursday that a framework agreement had been reached on a prisoner swap involving Shalit and Palestinians held in Israeli jails, adding the two sides still need to work out details of the agreement.
"We agreed recently on a framework with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to solve the problem of Shalit, in agreement with the Egyptians, and this process is happening quickly," Abbas said.
However, Knesset (parliament) member Ahmed Tibi, who met with Abbas Thursday evening in Ramallah, said on Friday that a deal on Shalit's release did not seem to be imminent.
According to a Yedioth Ahronoth report on Thursday, a senior Palestinian source involved in negotiations for the release of the kidnapped soldier said that the coming days could bring about a breakthrough in the Shalit issue. Abbas would arrive in Gaza over the weekend, during which he is expected to deal with the Shalit issue, the source said.
The source added that the key was now in Israel's hands, saying that without the release of senior Palestinians prisoners jailed in Israel for life sentences over the murder of Israelis, there would be no deal. Shalit was abducted by Palestinian militants in a cross-border raid last June.--Xinhua
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