Haim Ramon: No Shalit deal unless Hamas shows flexibility

Vice Premier Haim Ramon said on Sunday that if Hamas does not temper its demands, Israel would be unable to make a deal with the Palestinian militant group for the release of kidnapped Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit.

"If there is no flexibility in demands on Hamas' side as well, it won't be possible to reach an agreement," said Ramon. The vice premier's remarks came after Hamas spokesman Abu Obeida said on Saturday that the group would not settle for its earlier demand for 450 Palestinian prisoners, but is seeking the release of more than 1,000 in exchange for Shalit.

The IDF soldier has been held in Gaza since June 2006, when he was abducted by Palestinian militants in a cross-border raid.

Ramon made the comments at the close of a meeting of a ministerial panel on the issue of Palestinian prisoner releases. The committee, which is headed by the vice premier, convened on Sunday to compose a list of 450 Palestinian prisoners set for release in exchange for Shalit.

The list, which was to include 70 names that already meet Israel's existing criteria for release, and additional prisoners for whom the criteria will be amended, will be handed to Egypt to be transferred to Hamas for consideration.

Shalit's family, meanwhile, issued a statement on Sunday expressing "shock and dismay" over any Israeli release of Palestinian prisoners outside the framework of a prisoner exchange deal aimed expressly at securing Gilad's freedom.

The Shalit family statement came in response to media reports that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was expected to ask Prime Minister Ehud Olmert during their meeting on Sunday to release more Palestinian prisoners currently jailed in Israel as a gesture of goodwill.

Last week, Israel released 199 Palestinian prisoners in a gesture of goodwill to the Palestinian Authority ahead of a visit in the region by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.