CAIRO: Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah have reached a deal brokered by Germany for a prisoner exchange to take place within two or three weeks, the state-owned daily Al-Ahram reported Sunday. The prisoner swap between Hezbollah and Israel is to take place within two or three weeks maximum, thanks to a German mediation which is currently arranging the details of the exchange, the paper said, citing high-ranking officials. According to the newspaper, the swap could take place simultaneously or in two stages. In the second scenario, the Shiite militant group would hand over the two Israeli soldiers captured on July 12 after receiving strong guarantees from the German mediator that Lebanese prisoners would be released the next day or the day after. The deadly cross-border raid in which Hezbollah seized the two soldiers triggered a massive Israeli offensive against Lebanon to which the militants responded with rocket fire on northern Israel. At least 1,200 Lebanese, most of them civilians, and 160 Israelis, most of them soldiers, were killed in the month-long conflict. Germany brokered a January 2004 deal which saw Israel exchange some 429 Arab prisoners for the release of an Israeli businessman captured by Hezbollah and the remains of three soldiers. When he announced the capture of the two soldiers, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah said he was ready to exchange them for Arabs held in Israel. Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni has said her government is ready to negotiate for a release of the two soldiers. Al-Ahram said an exchange between Israel and Hezbollah would help efforts to secure the release of a third Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, captured on June 25 by Gaza-based militants. Once a Hezbollah-Israel deal is reached, the Shalit problem could be solved even before the other two soldiers are freed, the newspaper said. Shalit s captors, who include militants of the governing Hamas movement, have demanded the release of hundreds of Palestinians detained by Israel. The Jewish state has officially refused a swap and launched a punishing offensive against the Gaza Strip but mediation efforts led by Egypt are still believed to be under way. AFP
Deal for Israel-Hezbollah prisoner swap reportedly in the works
