Israel said on Sunday it had resumed indirect talks with the Hamas rulers of Gaza on swapping hundreds of Palestinian prisoners for a captive soldier held for more than four years.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the German mediator who had been working to broker a deal to bring home the soldier for about a year has returned to the region.
“We are operating at all times, in different and various ways to bring him back. One of these ways, even the main way, is this negotiation, which indeed resumed a few weeks ago,” Mr. Netanyahu told Israel Army Radio on Sunday.
The announcement was the latest twist in a saga that has gripped the country's attention since Hamas-linked militants captured Sgt. Gilad Schalit in a June 2006 raid across the Gaza-Israeli border.Secret negotiations over a swap, mediated by Egypt and more recently by Germany, have repeatedly broken down, and talks have been stalled for months.
Hamas, which seeks Israel's destruction, has no official relations with Israel.
Deals proposed in the past would have entailed Israel swapping about 1,000 Palestinian prisoners for Sgt. Schalit. The most recent talks broke down over Israel's refusal to release a number of prisoners who carried out deadly attacks on civilians because of fears they would return to violence. Hamas insists these prisoners be part of any deal.
Hamas officials said over the weekend that the lead German mediator had returned to the region. Neither Mr. Netanyahu nor Hamas officials provided any details about the state of negotiations. But Hamas spokesman Ayman Taha said the German mediator's visit was “exploratory” and that he had not brought a new offer.
Public opinion
“Netanyahu is misleading Israeli public opinion when he talks about his willingness to make major concessions in order to conclude the deal,” Mr. Taha said.
Since his capture over four years ago, Sgt. Schalit has received no outside visitors, and little is known about his whereabouts or condition.
Last October, Hamas released a short video of him that appeared to show him in good health. Before that, the only signs he was still alive were three letters and an audiotape. Hamas has not allowed the Red Cross to see him. Sgt. Schalit's plight has touched many in Israel. Jewish citizens perform mandatory military service, giving many the feeling that his fate could have befallen someone in their family.
Sgt. Schalit's family has enjoyed broad public support for their campaign to release the soldier and went ahead on Sunday with their regular weekly demonstration before each Israeli Cabinet meeting.
