Report: Hamas leans toward accepting Israel offer on Shalit deal
Latest proposal doesn't include release of hardened Palestinian terrorists, according to Arab paper.
By Avi Issacharoff Tags: Gilad Shalit Israel newsHamas is leaning toward accepting Israel's latest offer on a deal for the release of abducted Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, the pan-Arab newspaper A-Sharq Al-Awset reported Thursday.
According to the paper, the proposal does not include the release of hardened Palestinian terrorists from Israeli custody.
There are still divisions within Hamas over the matter, A-Sharq Al-Awset reported, between those who back accepting the current offer, and those who want the Islamist militant group to insist on the terrorists' release.
Palestinian sources have told Haaretz that the Hamas leadership abroad is leading the opposition against move, along with group's military wing in Gaza; the Hamas leadership in the coastal territory, however, is in favor of it.
Abdallah Barghouti, a senior bombmaker for Hamas' military wing in the West Bank, and Abbas a-Sayad, the Hamas head in Tul Karm who planned the 2002 massacre during Passover in Netanya's Park Hotel, are among the prisoners whom Israel proposes to leave out of the deal, A-Sharq Al-Awset said.
They were quoted as telling Hamas leaders that this is the last chance to secure their release, warning that if they were not exchanged for Shalit, they would remain in Israeli jails forever.
On Tuesday, Hamas spokesman Ayman Taha said Tuesday that the sides were still a long way off from reaching a deal for Shalit, who was kidnapped in a 2006 cross-border raid by Gaza militants.
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Shalit in a video from September. |
| Photo by: (Reuters) |
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when i read about the Palestinian Authority's collusion with Israel and its policies of suppression of the people of Gaza I feel such pain in my heart that Abbas would go to such despicable lengths to keep his position as leader of the PLO rather than step down and let someone more acceptable to the Palestinians---the very people he has sworn to serve with honor. Hamas is the choice of the people---not the choice of Israel and the United States. We must allow the people of Palestine to choose their leader and by doing so, give some semblance of truth to our demands for human rights--whether we agree with their choice or not.
There wouldn't be an Israel today had the Palestinians accepted Partition in 1947. Israel's original very truncated borders weren't even internally contiguous and all of Jerusalem was declared an international city under UN jurisdiction. Repeatedly over the years the Palestinians turned down deal after deal because they're real agenda is to throw the Jews into the sea. Israel is finally coming around to the reality of Palestinians real desires and like all sensible countries decided to defend itself. If that means harsh action against whatever the enemy is labeled, so be it. Time for the Pals to sleep on the bed nails they built for themselves.
Israel doesn't yet realize that Hamas takes Nelson Mandela's 27 years in prison as its policy standard re prisoners. Israel needs to be just as tough even if that means absent a military rescue Shalit grows old in custody.
Hypocrite. You live off of the wrong doings of your ancestors and don't even care to look back.
Israel takes the land of the Palestinians, killing many hundreds of civilians in the process. Israel characterizes the resistance of the Palestinians as "terrorism". It is amazing that they have gotten away with this for so long a time. Of course, the world was slow to react to this sort of thing in the 1930's as well, which gave rise to world war 2. Hopefully it will not go unchecked for so long this time.
This has been talked about for so long. When it comes to Shalit's release I'll believe it when I see it. As far a Shalit himself goes, once he's released, I'd imagine that he'd be in a mess of trouble for getting captured in the first place and causing all of this trouble but I guess his experience in getting captured and his captivity makes him a valuable resource for instructing others.
All they have succeeded in doing is impoverishing further the already impoverished, what a great accomplishment! No wonder the "leadership" in the Strip is willing to strike a deal while the likes of the "leadership" in Damascus are still holding out. Some "leadership"!
israel can and should wait for a better deal. a problem with urgency is the palestinians would get results from their kidnapping far too quickly.the soldiers family would not agree but it is so.
surrounded with 40,000 missiles. It is a diversion from the reality of our lack of will to fight anti Jewish neighbors.