Chief Rabbi Metzger: Gilad will light Hanukkah candles with us

Noam Shalit, father of captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, met with Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar Wednesday in Jerusalem. At the end of the meeting, Shalit said, "We received moral support from the rabbi. We understood from him that he will support the government's decision."

Prior to the meeting, Rabbi Amar said, "On the one hand retrieving all of our captives is the biggest mitzvah. But on the other hand there is halachic ruling stating that you shouldn't give (enemies too much in return for the captives) so they won't develop an appetite.

"There is nothing more important than saving a boy like this, but, on the other hand, it should not cause others, Heaven forbid, to be in trouble," he said.

The rabbi said that in case a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas is finalized, the public debate surrounding the issue should come to a close "and instead we should all rejoice with Gilad."

Shortly after the meeting a source close to the negotiations said Israel rejected a demand for the release of two Hamas commanders as part of any exchange for Shalit, signaling talks had hit a snag.

"Hamas still insists on its demands," the source, who declined to be named, told Reuters, naming the two top Hamas prisoners as Ibrahim Hamed and Abdallah Barghouti.

Later on Wednesday, Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi Yona Metzger said during his meeting with Noam Shalit, "I have a feeling Gilad will be lighting Hanukkah candles with us in two weeks' time.

Metzger said the Chief Rabbinate cannot present its official position regarding a prisoner swap as of yet, and slammed the rightist rabbis who announced that the halacha forbids a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas, calling their ruling "pretentious."

Metzger reiterated that it is not possible to make a halachic ruling on the issue of the swap deal without being privy to all the details of the swap and the considerations behind it.

Noam Shalit said during the meeting, "I want to offer my support to (Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu) and the Israeli government, if and when it reaches a decision on the matter.

"The time has come for the government to reach a decision that will do right by us and by all of Israel," said the captive's father.