Corporal Gilad Shalit
Photo: Noam Rotem
Al-Hayat: Gilad Shalit alive
London-based Arabic newspaper says Khaled Mashaal told Jesse Jackson during meeting in Damascus that kidnapped IDF soldier is alive, being kept in safe location; Jackson hopes to meet Nasrallah before coming to Israel
The London-based Arabic-language daily al-Hayat reported on Tuesday that Hamas politburo Khaled Mashaal told Reverent Jesse Jackson during a meeting in Damascus that kidnapped Corporal Gilad Shalit is alive and is being kept at a safe location.
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Mashaal said Hamas is interested in a prisoner exchange deal with Israel, "especially when 10,000 Palestinians are held in Israeli jails."
Mashaal said Hamas would be keep to release Shalit if Israel frees Palestinian women and children jailed in Israel.
Jackson also held talks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in Damascus before leaving to Lebanon where he met with President Emile Lahoud, Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.
Jackson said he was keen on meeting Hizbullah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah to discuss the release of two Israeli soldiers kidnapped by the Shiite group. Jackson's Middle East tour includes a stop in Israel.
He told the newspaper that his mission in the region is to encourage all relevant parties to implement United Nations Resolution 1701, to encourage Arab countries to assist humanitarian and reconstruction efforts in Lebanon and to encourage Hamas and Hizbullah to negotiate prisoner exchange deals with Israel.
The newspaper quoted unnamed officials as saying that the letters were delivered to Hizbullah by Lebanese sources mediating between the Shiite group and European diplomats.
