For relatives of Hamas militant Mohammad al-Sharatha and others jailed by Israel, progress towards a deal to swap Palestinian prisoners for an Israeli soldier was a rare sign of hope.
"We have been awaiting this day," Sharatha's wife, Umm Nimer, said today as she and her family appealed to Palestinian leaders to include husbands, fathers and sons among those released in exchange for Israeli Corporal Gilad Shalit. Freeing leading militants from Israeli jails is a highly emotive issue for Palestinians, as well as for Israelis who have lost relatives in attacks.
"He killed my son," said Gilbert Saadon, mother of one of the Israeli soldiers killed in a 1989 Hamas attack linked to Sharatha. "I do not approve (of his release) in any way," she told Israel's NRG Maariv news website. Local press reports said Sharatha was on the list but that has not been confirmed by Hamas.
Other Israelis who have lost family members in Palestinian attacks said they would support a swap in order to ensure Shalit returns to his home after 10 months of captivity in Gaza. Haya Hevi, whose husband was killed in a 2002 restaurant bombing, said she was angry to learn the names of the Palestinian militants who might be released, but added: "I also feel grief for the soldier (Shalit) and I want them (the militants) to return him home."
Hamas, which now leads the Palestinian government, has handed over the names of Palestinian prisoners it wants the Jewish state free in exchange for Shalit. Hamas is reportedly demanding the release of 1,300 prisoners, including Marwan Barghouthi, a Fatah leader widely seen as a possible successor to the moderate Abbas, as well as senior Hamas commander Yehya al-Sinwar.
After months of deadlock, a Shalit deal could be key to any progress in talks Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have agreed to hold on a biweekly basis at the urging of the United States. But Olmert could also face a backlash from relatives of Israeli victims for agreeing to release Palestinian militants with "blood on their hands".
halit was seized last June by militants from Hamas and other groups who tunnelled into Israel from Gaza.