SENIOR ISRAELI ministers convened for the fifth time in two days last night, with a German mediator awaiting a final answer on the terms of a prisoner swap with Hamas.
Israel has already agreed to release 980 Palestinian detainees in return for Gilad Shalit, the corporal seized in a daring cross-border raid by militants from Gaza 3½ years ago.
After months of arduous negotiations involving Egyptian and German mediation, the sides have also reportedly agreed on the names of the prisoners to be set free.
Holding up agreement was the insistence of Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu that prisoners who have participated directly in terrorist attacks, those classified by Israel as having “blood on their hands”, be transferred to Gaza or sent abroad rather than being allowed to return to their West Bank homes.
While Hamas is reportedly willing to allow a few detainees to be sent into exile, Israel wants dozens deported.
Israeli censors have imposed strict restrictions on reporting details of the ongoing contacts, but Israeli intelligence officials have reportedly warned that the release of a large number of hard-core detainees to the West Bank could trigger a new wave of militant attacks.
There is also concern that the prisoner swap will boost the standing of Hamas and undermine the position of the moderate camp, led by Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas.
Despite the strict censorship, the ongoing deliberations of the seven-member inner security cabinet have dominated news in Israel over the last couple of days.
The forum was said to be deeply divided, and the discussions were described as tense.
Gilad Shalit is a household name and, in a country where military service is compulsory for most of the population, many families closely identify with the struggle of the captive soldier’s parents to ensure their son is set free.
“I hope that they will decide today and that everyone who votes understands that their vote means either a death sentence for Gilad or that he will be set free,” Gilad’s mother, Aviva, said ahead of a meeting with Mr Netanyahu yesterday.
President Shimon Peres called on the public and its leaders to allow the inner cabinet to make its decision with as little distraction as possible.
Opposition parties yesterday withdrew no-confidence motions against the government in order to allow the senior ministers to continue uninterrupted their deliberations on the deal.