Yesterday, I diaried about a potential prisoner swap between the Israeli government and Hamas. Hamas is currently holding IDF soldier Gilad Shalit, while Israel holds a number of Palestinians accused and/or convicted of terrorist activities. Arguably the most prized Palestinian prisoner being discussed is Marwan Barghouti, former leader of the Tanzim militia. Barghouti was convicted on May 20, 2004 of murder for his involvement three terrorist attacks in Israel that killed five people. He was acquitted for 33 other murders due to lack of evidence of his direct involvement in those crimes.
Somewhat unsurprisingly, Jerusalem is balking at some of Hamas' demands. Perhaps also unsurprising is internal disagreements within Hamas' leadership. Ha'aretz reports that a deal is still going to take days to complete:
Prisoner swap talks between Hamas and Israel have hit a snag over some of the top militants the Islamic group wants freed in return for Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit, and a deal is unlikely in the coming days, Hamas officials said Wednesday.
According to the Ha'aretz article, Egyptian sources "told Fox News that a final decision on the deal that would see Shalit" requires some decisions to be made by Hamas, but that Israel would also have to "decide whether to green light several of the names on Hamas' list and make the exchange happen." Indeed, there are several difficult decisions to be made by both Hamas and Israel. More from the Ha'aretz article:
The London-based Arabic language daily Al Hayat reported that the Hamas leadership was split over the Israeli compromise proposal. According to the report, senior Damascus-based Hamas officials are in disagreement: while the more extreme officials insist on the release of all the prisoners on their list, more moderate Hamas leaders contend that it is futile to expect that Israel meet all of the group's demands.
The Arab daily also said that for the first time since Shalit's abduction over three years ago, Israel has agreed to release Palestinian prisoners considered "heavy" - or having committed serious crimes. However, Hamas sources told an Al Hayat reporter in Cairo that Israel still refuses to release some of the prisoners on the list, and has even turned down a Palestinian proposal to deport those men from the Palestinian territories following their release.
Among the prisoners Israel refuses to release are Ibrahim Hamed, the former commander of Hamas' military wing and the mastermind behind the terror bombing at Moment cafe in Jerusalem; Abdallah Barghouti, a relative of Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti and another mastermind of the Moment attack as well as terror attacks at Sbarro pizza parlor in Jerusalem and on Allenby Street in Tel Aviv.
That there is a Palestinian proposal "to deport [some of the proposed prisoners] from the Palestinian territories following their release" would tell me that there is an increasing amount of wiggle room and willingness on both parties' part to negotiate. In what could also be viewed as a positive development, a number of families who were injured or who lost loved ones to the terrorist activities of some of the would-be released have indicated their reluctant support for the swap.
Despite her personal catastrophe, [the thoughts of Galina Michaltzvich, who was severely injured in a Netanya terror attack] are with Noam and Aviva Shalit. "Gilad (Shalit) should be released already, even for a heavy price," she admits, "on the one hand, the terrorist should continue to serve his jail sentence, but on the other hand, I am thinking about Gilad's parents who are waiting for over three years, and what's important is that he returns.
[...]
Korin Ben-Aroya, whose husband died and daughter severely injured in the Park hotel attack, also supports the deal. "There are harsh feelings," Ben-Aroya noted, "I do not envy those who are responsible for making the decision.
"On the one hand my first instinct is to yell, but when thinking about it sensibly, I believe we have no other choice. Gilad Shalit should not pay the price for indecision. This young man has been held there for three years; wars should not be waged on his expense," she said.
Yedioth Ahronoth
To be sure, desire for a swap to be executed is not a universally held opinion among any segments of the Israeli populace. But there is enough popular support for there to be a positive political calculation by Israeli leaders who would not need to fear electoral backlash by making the deal. In fact, stakeholders on both sides of the swap are intensifying their efforts to complete the transfer:
The Shalit family members are continuing their battle to have their son released. Gilad's father, Noam, is expected to meet Wednesday with Ministers Yuval Steinitz (Likud) and Uzi Landau (Yisrael Beiteinu) in an attempt to change their minds and have them vote in favor of a possible deal. He will later try to gain the support of Israel's chief rabbis as well.
The Palestinian prisoners' families are also exerting heavy pressures in a bid to find out whether their sons are included on the list of inmates slated to be released. It is still unclear whether former Fatah Secretary-General in the West Bank Marwan Barghouti, who is serving several life terms for murder, will be freed as part of the deal.
Yedioth Ahronoth
The next few days will likely give us an idea of whether a swap is actually possible. The question which will remain unanswered is whether or not these negotiations yield anything broader in the goal of an eventual peaceful resolution of the conflict.