Permanent Gaza truce, a catch-22?

[TriWooOx]

Quote:Israel has ruled out any truce agreement with the Islamic movement of Hamas before the release of the captured Israeli soldier Gilas Shalit.

Outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Saturday that Tel Aviv would not open crossings into the Gaza Strip without the return of Shalit -- who was captured by Palestinian fighters in a cross-border operation in 2006.

"The position of the prime minister is that Israel won't reach any arrangement on a truce before the release of Gilad Shalit," read a statement from the prime minister's office.

Hamas, meanwhile, demands the opening of all border crossings into the besieged strip in addition to the release of 1,400 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Shalit.

The Gaza Strip has been under a tight blockade since the democratically-elected government of Hamas took power in the sliver in June 2007.

"Either way, the crossings will not be open without Shalit's release. This is a commitment that the prime minister has made and he intends to act accordingly," the Saturday statement added.

Egyptian sources have confirmed the Israeli stance.

Citing the sources, the daily al-Hayat reported Saturday that in the first phase of a prison swap, Israel would release some 1000 Palestinian prisoners, including underage and female prisoners and Palestinian parliament members.

"They will open the crossings completely only after Shalit is released," the report said.

According to the Israeli Radio, should the prisoners be released they would not be allowed to return to either the Gaza Strip or the West Bank.

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