Israel Would Trade 400 For Soldier, Egypt Says

Israel would exchange as many as 400 Palestinian prisoners to secure the release of an Israeli soldier who has been held by Palestinian militants for nearly two years under a deal being negotiated with the assistance of Egyptian mediators, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said yesterday.

While the broad outlines of a possible agreement have been previously reported by anonymous sources, Aboul Gheit is the first senior official to publicly acknowledge that Israel is indirectly negotiating with Hamas, the armed Islamist group that controls the Gaza Strip.

The art of Middle East diplomacy is normally to keep silent -- or off the record -- about uncomfortable truths. But speaking to the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington, Aboul Gheit provided an unusually detailed account of the deal that is slowly taking shape.

Aboul Gheit asserted that "we're making good progress," though some sources say the talks have bogged down. Israel is trying to reduce the size of the prisoner release, and Hamas is pressing for a cease-fire that would include Gaza and the West Bank.

Aboul Gheit made his remarks on the same day that former president Jimmy Carter met in Damascus, Syria, with the exiled leader of Hamas, which won the Palestinian legislative election in 2006 and calls for the elimination of Israel. Carter was condemned in Israel for the meeting.

The Israeli Embassy declined to comment on Aboul Gheit's remarks, citing a policy of not commenting on negotiations involving captive soldiers. Israel has called for the unconditional release of Cpl. Gilad Shalit, who was abducted on June 25, 2006.

In his remarks, Aboul Gheit said there are three basic elements to the negotiation -- an unofficial cease-fire, the exchange of prisoners and an opening of Gaza's long-closed border crossings.

He said it would be more advantageous for peace talks if a unity government could be restored between Hamas and its rival, Fatah, which controls the Palestinian Authority. The unity government collapsed nearly a year ago after Hamas seized Gaza, and Aboul Gheit said Egypt saw little prospect of a reconciliation "for the time being."

As a result, he said, the first step is to establish "a period of quiet" between Israel and Hamas, which, he said, "sets well with Israelis" because they do not want "a signed written agreement with Hamas."

Under this arrangement, Hamas and other militant groups would stop firing missiles into Israel and Israelis would be bound not to target Palestinian activists inside Gaza or fire on Gaza. "There will not be targeted killings or assassinations or what have you," he said.

That would be followed by would be an exchange of prisoners. Shalit is still alive, Aboul Gheit said, and he would be handed over to Egypt, which in turn would deliver him back to Israel.

"At the same time, there will be a release of possibly a figure of around 400 Palestinians," Aboul Gheit said, noting that Israel holds as many as 12,000 Palestinians. "How are we to name them or to target them? The Palestinians will be giving lists. The Israelis will be taking out whoever is to be released. Or vice versa, the Israelis will put the names to the Palestinians."

Finally, he said, the long-closed crossings between Gaza and Israel would be opened, under arrangements involving the Palestinian Authority and both Egyptian and U.S. observers, he said.

"If the crossings are to be opened, then we would ensure that flow of goods, of people, of material, of everything, is allowed, and the Palestinians in Gaza will not feel deprived as they are right now," Aboul Gheit said.

"There will have to be a point where people will end that fight," Aboul Gheit added. "I often look to both an Israeli soldier holding the neck of a Palestinian youth. They look alike. They are almost the same in features and in everything. They are cousins."