Former Shin Bet official and Israel Defense and Security Forum (IDSF) member Yossi Amrosi, spoke on Tuesday about the negotiations to free the hostages in Gaza.
In an interview with Radio Tzafon 104.5 FM, Amrosi said: "The main significance of Shin Bet Director Ronen Bar's trip to Cairo is that there are negotiations. You can see signs of joint interests between the sides which may lead to progress and bring back the hostages. On a basic level, we are not close to signing and far from an agreement."
According to him, "We need to examine the details such as how many prisoners will be released, which prisoners, will we leave Gaza, when will we leave, what happens to the displaced Palestinians, how much could the IDF operate in Gaza. One of the big obstacles in the negotiations is the Philadelphi Corridor, the foundation of the question of whether or not Hamas regrows, is its source of equipment."
He warned about one terrorist in particular that Israel would not be able to release at any cost. "If Abdullah Barghouti, who is serving 66 life sentences, is released, you're releasing the next Yahya Sinwar. The underground tunnel system which Hamas has been building for 17 years is complex and confusing and it's difficult to locate it. We wanted to buy quiet with Qatari money and we knew that we were paying the price of Hamas boosting its tunnels and missiles."