Acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert discussed Israel's Egyptian-mediated negotiations with Hamas on Thursday, and confirmed rumors that more terrorists had been added to the list of those Israel has agreed to release in exchange for kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit. Hundreds more terrorist prisoners are now on the list, he said.
Olmert did not detail Hamas's response to the latest offer, saying only that “progress in the talks was registered.”
Olmert defended his decision to condition a Gaza ceasefire on Shalit's release, and rejected Hamas's argument that Israel's demand for a prisoner exchange deal prior to a Gaza truce would harm relations between Israel and Egypt.
Shalit was kidnapped by Gaza terrorists almost 1,000 days ago when his Gaza-area base was attacked by Hamas and its allies. Two soldiers were killed in the attack.
Shalit's captors have refused to allow the Red Cross or other aid groups to see the captive soldier, in violation of international human rights laws.
The prime minister also recalled the three-week Cast Lead counterterrorism offensive in Gaza earlier this year, and said the operation had been successful. “We embarked on a war with Hamas and we crushed them,” he said.
Israel succeeded in “changing the reality vis-a-vis Hamas,” Olmert said.
The Cast Lead offensive killed approximately 1,200 Gaza Arabs, at least 800 of whom are believed to have been armed terrorists. Dozens of Israeli soldiers were killed or badly wounded in the fighting, and several civilians were killed and wounded by rockets fired on southern Israel.