Egypt: Israeli soldier may be freed soon
Associated Press
Date: 11-30-06
JERUSALEM - Egypt's intelligence chief has told Israeli officials he believes a soldier captured in June by Hamas-linked militants could be released within three weeks, an Israeli Cabinet minister said Thursday.
Omar Suleiman, the intelligence chief, told the Israelis during a visit on Wednesday that he was optimistic a prisoner swap leading to the release of Cpl. Gilad Shalit could be quickly negotiated, said Israeli Cabinet minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, who met with the Egyptian.
"Within three weeks he (Suleiman) believes Gilad will be home," Ben-Eliezer told Israel's Army Radio.
But other Israeli officials cautioned against being overly optimistic, saying little progress had been made in the talks with Suleiman. Ben-Eliezer said he himself is praying that Shalit will be released by the end of the year.
Shalit's capture in a cross-border raid from Gaza sparked five months of Israeli-Palestinian fighting in the coastal area. The violence has been quelled by a cease-fire that went into effect on Sunday, a move that has made it possible for the sides to attempt to advance talks for Shalit's release.
The Palestinians are demanding Israel free more than 1,000 prisoners in exchange for Shalit. Israel holds more than 9,000 Palestinian prisoners in its jails.
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