Palestinians, Israel deny prisoner swap report
Thu, 2 Jun 2011 10:52 GMT
CAIRO, June 2 (Reuters) - Palestinian and Israeli officials on Thursday played down reports of an imminent deal on an exchange of prisoners and said there was no breakthrough on the issue, a major hurdle in talks over Palestinian statehood.
Egyptian newspaper al-Mesryoon's website quoted Egypt's former Israel ambassador Mohamed Bassiouni as saying an official announcement could come within hours.
The deal would see the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit -- captured in Israel in 2006 -- in exchange for a thousand Palestinians held in Israeli prisons, the independent daily paper cited Bassiouni as saying.
A diplomat in the region said Israeli defence official Amos Gilad had visited Cairo to discuss other issues of concern to Israel but there was no breakthrough in the discussions on Shalit, adding: "The newspaper report is not correct".
"There is no progress in Shalit's file. There is no truth that the case would be concluded soon," said Abu Mujahed, a spokesman for the Popular Resistance Committees, which took part in the attack in which Shalit was captured.
Israel's government also denied the report.
"In light of the Egyptian reports on the matter of Gilad Shalit, the prime minister's office states that contacts ... are intensive and continuous, but there is no breakthrough," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement.
Israel's former armed forces chief said last month that Israel had failed to locate Shalit, making negotiations with Hamas the only option for retrieving him.
Egypt's army-backed interim government wants to improve ties with the Palestinians and brokered a reconciliation pact between the Hamas and Fatah factions to end their four-year feud last month.
French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe was in Jerusalem on Thursday and due to meet the parents of Shalit, who holds dual French nationality. There was no indication from the French that any breakthrough was in the offing. (Reporting by Sarah Mikhail and Nidal al-Muhgrabi; Writing by Tom Pfeiffer; Editing by Jon Boyle)
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