Shalit's father: Sarkozy assured me Gilad is alive

The father of abducted Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit said that French President Nicolas Sarkozy had assured him during their talks in Paris on Tuesday that his son is still alive.

The French president met with Noam Shalit to update him on the latest developments in the diplomatic efforts to secure the release of Gilad, who was captured by Gaza militants in a 2006 cross-border raid.

Speaking to Haaretz from France, the elder Shalit noted that no new direct messages from his son were received, but expressed hope that, "something might well be on the way."

He said the new information was received at a pre-arranged meeting with Sarkozy, who has been trying to secure up-to-date information about the soldier's state ever since the cease-fire went into force earlier this month.

In a statement released on Monday, Sarkozy's office said France was working to bring about Shalit's release, citing the letter written by Shalit's parents and passed along to Syria and Qatar. Last September, Sarkozy requested that Syrian President Bashar Assad use his contacts with Hamas to forward the letter to Gilad Shalit.

A French lawmaker sent by Sarkozy on a Middle East fact finding mission said earlier Tuesday that France has asked Syria to encourage Hamas to release Shalit.

Sarkozy raised the issue with Assad by telephone last week, Philippe Marini told reporters. Shalit is a dual French-Israeli national, captured by Gaza militants in a 2006 cross-border raid.

Diplomats in the Syrian capital said Shalit's release was also a main focus of a visit by Sarkozy to Damascus this month during the Israeli invasion of Gaza.

"Mr. Shalit is an Israeli soldier but he is also a French national. We insist a lot on this because it is our duty to defend our citizens," Marini said.

The French senator would not drawn on whether Syria, which hosts the exiled leadership of Hamas, was exercising influence on Hamas to release Shalit, but he said a deal was needed after Egyptian mediation for a prisoner swap went nowhere.

Marini, who is well connected in Syria, hinted that Shalit's release was tied to strengthening a cease-fire between Hamas and Israel that halted the Israeli offensive in Gaza and to lifting the blockade on the strip.

Hamas cited the Israeli blockade, which has hurt Gaza's 1.5 million Palestinians, as one of the reasons for not renewing a previous "calm" with Israel last month.

"All parties must understand that [Shalit] is a very important issue for progress on maintaining the ceasefire and other discussions," Marini said after meeting Assad.

Israel believes that maintaining restrictions on Gaza's border crossings will give it leverage on Hamas to free Shalit.

The Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, and other Palestinian organizations captured the soldier in a raid outside Gaza.

Egypt had been mediating a prisoners swap but Hamas and Israel disagreed on the number of Palestinians prisoners to be freed in return for Shalit.

Palestinian political commentator Ali Badwan said that Hamas was sticking to a list of 500 prisoners and that the group was against linking Shalit to a deal other than a prisoner swap.

The list includes Ahmed Saadat, head of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouthi, who was jailed for orchestrating attacks against Israel during the last Palestinian uprising.

Meanwhile, Hamas on Monday rejected an Israeli offer that linked the opening of Gaza's border crossings to Shalit's release.

Fawzi Barhoum, a spokesman for the group, told Haaretz that under no circumstances would the organization accept such a linkage. First, Israel must open the crossings, he said; then the parties can talk about Shalit.

"Ultimately, the responsibility for returning Gilad is in the hands of the government of Israel and we expect that a way to his release will be found before the conclusion of the present government's term," Brigadier-General (res.) Hezi Meshita, the head of a citizen's organization leading the public campaign for Shalit's freedom, said on Tuesday.

"We hope that the president of France will have encouraging news," Meshita said. "We thank the president of France for his efforts to bring about Gilad's release."

	French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
	Photo by: (Reuters)