On his 4th birthday in captivity, progress in Shalit negotiations

On the fourth birthday Gilad Shalit is spending in captivity, it is possible to point to a number of positive developments that took place in recent weeks during the negotiations for his release.

These are not breakthroughs that will return him to his parents' home in the coming days, though.

First, the government of Benjamin Netanyahu has decided to take up negotiations. To this end they have had to overcome a major psychological barrier - the red line that Ehud Olmert had set when he argued that if more than 325 prisoners from the list of 450 demanded by Hamas, then it would undermine Israel's security.

Egypt's precondition for resuming the talks was for the talks to restart from that point and discuss the 125 prisoners that Israel had rejected for release.

Second is the political life jacket being thrown by Hamas in view of its dropping standing in public opinion polls among the Palestinians. It might be domestic political difficulties, the rising power of Fatah or that group's success during the Sixth Conference of the PLO causing the softening of their stance.

Third, the involvement of the German mediator, who has already managed to visit several Middle Eastern capitals and has already made a positive contribution to the talks with Israel.

Irrespective of who is doing the work, what is important is that the cooperation between the Egyptian intelligence officials and the German mediator is working well, and it is fair to assume that the role of a neutral outsider is helping assuage the suspicions of Hamas against Cairo's inherent regional interests.

Another development was the visit last week of a delegation of Hamas' military wing, led by Ahmed Jabari. The presence of the man who is essentially the group's chief of staff, along with his senior lieutenants, reflects the seriousness in which the talks are being held.