Sides closing gaps on deal for soldiers’ bodies, Hamas says
Senior Gaza official says ‘field work done’ on swap deal ahead of Cairo talks, but ‘hard to say’ a deal is imminent
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A senior Hamas official in Gaza confirmed the group is nearing a deal with Israel over the return of the remains of two IDF soldiers, according to a report in the Israeli media Tuesday.
Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul were killed in separate incidents during fighting in Gaza over the 50-day military campaign.
The army declared both of them killed in action based on evidence it acquired, but their bodies were unable to be retrieved. A funeral was held for Goldin, and a coffin was interred. None was held for Shaul.
The return of their remains is expected to be near the top of Israel’s list of demands during ceasefire negotiations with Hamas in Cairo scheduled to begin in late October. It’s not clear what the contours of such a deal would be but it’s possible that Hamas sees it as an opportunity to free prisoners held by Israel.
“Although negotiations in Cairo will only begin next month, the actual field work has been done,” the official told the Israel Hayom daily on Monday. “We are passing messages all the time between the sides through the Egyptian mediators and the gaps have been narrowed.”
“However, it’s hard to say that we are on the verge of signing a deal to release prisoners,” he added.
The officials were responding to a Facebook post Monday by Hamas spokesman Mushir al-Masri asserting that “future negotiations may lead to a new deal for the release of as many prisoners as possible.”
The Times of Israel Community.