Labor MK: Shalit could be free in two weeks
Daniel Ben Simon: Former PM Ehud Olmert didn't want to pay the price for Shalit's freedom.
By Yanir Yagna Tags: Gilad Shalit Israel newsLabor MK Daniel Ben Simon said Saturday that abducted Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit could be free within the next two weeks.
Shalit was abducted by Gaza militants in a cross-border raid in 2006 and has been held captive since. Hamas, the rulers of the Gaza Strip, have demanded the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners jailed in Israel in exchange for Shalit's freedom.
Ben Simon praised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday, saying he has done what no Israeli leader has before him.
"There is no other leader who has done what Netanyahu has done, and he has done and will do what no one in the Labor Party has ever dared to do," Ben Simon said, adding that the negotiations were stuck during the tenure of former premier Ehud Olmert because he "didn't want to pay the price."
Despite reports earlier Saturday that Netanyahu told Ben Simon the deal would be finalized within a week or two, the Labor MK and the Prime Minister's Bureau issued statements Saturday denying Netanyahu had made such a remark.
Ben Simon did confirm that Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti's name is on the list of prisoners Israel may free as part of the deal. He added that the main discussion in Israel is whether to release Barghouti to the West Bank or deport him abroad for a "cooling off period."
However, Ben Simon added that Barghouti could also potentially become a partner in peace talks with Israel. "It is possible that Israel will sit opposite Barghouti [at the negotiating table] in two years' time," he said.
Meanwhile, on Friday, the London-based daily Al-Hayyat reported that the German mediators overseeing the negotiations hope to convince Hamas to reduce the number of prisoners it is demanding be released in exchange for Shalit.
According to Al-Hayyat, three major issues were delaying conclusion of deal: First, Israel is refusing to release 50 of the 450 prisoners requested by Hamas for the swap; second, Israel will not rescind its demand to exile 130 of the released prisoners; third, Israel does not want to free Israeli Arabs as part of the deal.
Why Facebook Connect?
Comment on Haaretz.com articles with your Facebook login, and share your thoughts on your own wall.
- Latest
- Most Viewed
- Most Rated
- Open all
Just let us know when he IS released. Until then, leave it alone. It only helps Hamas.
that he will be free shortly. STOP this is so stupid of you. Hamas doesn't want to free Gilad this is the true.
But at what cost??? I wouldn't be happy about this deal....it's a loser. Just ask the families who will suffer deaths because of this corrupt and misguided policy. Wake up Israel...your problems are not really the enemies without...it's the problem within yourselves that's killing you.
how embarrased i am...believing olmert was the "worst". it seems to me that bb have reversed EVERY promise he made to israelis. wether iran, settlements, no dealings with terrorists, he broke them all. a real politician. plus, i can not understand how israel could free its citizens in entebee, and unable to do it at their doorstep? bugles the mind... my appologies mr olmert.
"Meaningless hurtful reporting" - Arnold It sure is. And so is the sleazy grandstanding by MK Daniel Ben Simon. "If there really is a final plan then there should be a total ban on the media till Shalit is free. I for one am totally fed up with all players on this issue." - Arnold Same here. But the 'ban' should be motivated by decency not threat of law. The situation is too important to be exploited for profit. A bit of responsibility by the Israeli press would be helpful.
this article states the release of "houndreds" but the reality is close to a THOUSAND.
by making a bad deal for Shalit.
We hand over our sons to the Israeli army for three years. It is therefore the responsibility of the army to return them to us, no matter what the price.The late premier Ithak Rabin set the precedent with the "jubril deal" years ago.The dye is set and we must now do the same even if it means releasing these animals. And lastly, look at the "good Friday " agreemnents in Ireland. how many terrorists were released for a peace deal?
It is Israeli demands and not Hammas' demands that are delaying this exchange deal , contrary to what Israel had been publicaly saying ....
Israeli officials are still haggling over demand that "Zionist colonizers who entered Palestine after imperialist Balfour Declaration return to their home countries with their descendants"--hope to get the baseline date pushed forward to 1947. Meanwhile, Shas is involved in discussions to consider means to implement requirement that "Mid-Eastern Jews of Arab heritage submit to the will of Allah, female Jewesses of Arab heritage to take the veil and learn proper moral codes of conduct of chastity, submissiveness, and honor"....
If there really is a final plan then there should be a total ban on the media till Shalit is free. I for one am totally fed up with all players on this issue.
It is amazing to see how Israeli leaders never miss an opportunity to shut up.Ben Simon's remarks could wait after Shalit's release.As for sending some of those terrorists to the four corners of the world:every time this has been done in the past it has produced a surge of pro-Palestinian feelings among the local population in every country they were sent to.Please reconsider...
It sounds like praise when Ben Simon says Netanyahu has done "what no on in the Labor Party has ever dared to do." That is, Netanyahu is courageous to release terrorists in order to secure the release of Gilad Shalit. But behavior that is rewarded tends to be repeated. Hamas crosses into Israel and captures an Israeli soldier, and Hamas is rewarded by the release of Palestinian terrorists. It is very hard to say "no" to the parents of an IDF soldier being held captive. But one must remember that rewarding Hamas now for capturing Shalit increases the incentive for Hamas or Hezbollah to capture other Israelis in the future. A courageous leader would limit the price paid for the release of Shalit, accepting longer imprisonment for Shalit as necessary to protect other Israelis from future Hamas actions.