Middle East: An Israeli minister suggested for the first time yesterday that Israel might release Palestinian prisoners, if an Israeli soldier being held by militants in the Gaza Strip was released and rocket fire into Israel ceased.
The Hamas militants holding the abducted soldier also scaled back the number of prisoners they were demanding in exchange for the 19-year-old corporal, raising speculation of a deal.
In northern Gaza, meanwhile, Israeli forces yesterday killed at least seven Palestinians, most of them militants, as troops, backed by aircraft and tanks, continued to fight armed masked men, mainly in the town of Beit Lahiye.
At least 23 Palestinians, most of them militants, were killed on Thursday in fierce battles with Israeli forces, which moved into northern Gaza for the first time since withdrawing from the coastal strip 10 months ago.
Despite the military operation, militants fired 15 rockets into Israel yesterday, lightly injuring three people.
Army chief Lieut Gen Dan Halutz said close to 40 Palestinians had been killed since Israel launched an operation last week aimed at winning the release of Cpl Gilad Shalit. One Israeli soldier has been killed in the fighting.
From the outset, the Israeli government has refused to negotiate with Cpl Shalit's captors, who demanded the release of over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. But public security minister Avi Dichter was quoted telling a conference yesterday that, if the soldier was released, and rocket and other attacks ceased, Israel "knows how to carry out a release of prisoners as a goodwill gesture. We did it in the past . . . "
The public security minister was not suggesting a simultaneous release of both the soldier and prisoners, but rather that the soldier would be freed, the rocket fire would cease, and then Israel would free prisoners. The deal suggested by Mr Dichter is very similar to an Egyptian proposal rejected earlier this week by Hamas. A Hamas deputy said the Palestinian people "have no faith in goodwill gestures".
But having initially demanded the release of some 1,500 prisoners, Hamas officials appeared to be scaling back their demands, saying they would release the soldier and stop rocket attacks in exchange for the release of all Palestinian female prisoners (there are just over 100) and some 30 long-serving prisoners, who have been in Israeli jails for more than 20 years.
There has been no sign of life from Cpl Shalit since he was abducted on June 25th, but Hamas militants holding him released a statement yesterday saying he was receiving "humane" treatment in accordance with the precepts of Islam.
In a statement from the EU, the Finnish presidency said: "The EU condemns the loss of lives caused by disproportionate use of force."