Israel Matzav

Yet another report that only one of Goldwasser and Regev is still alive

The radio news on the way down from the Golan spent the entire evening leading with an an-Nahar (Lebanon) newspaper report quoting German mediators as saying that only one of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev is still alive. Of course, Hezbullah won't say which one.

I blogged an al-Manar report on the first day of last summer's war that indicated that 'at least one' of the two was still alive. The implication, of course, is that the other one was dead. The IDF has already concluded based on its own investigation that both of them are likely dead, and I would give that a lot more credibility than I would give Hezbullah. Before the IDF report came out, I also said that, unfortunately, I do not believe they are alive.

Here's the original an-Nahar report:

An-Nahar quoted unnamed German diplomatic sources as saying officials in Berlin tried to obtain from Free Patriotic Movement leader Michael Aoun "some information" about the two Israeli soldiers kidnapped by Hizbullah operatives in a cross-border raid on July 12, 2006 which sparked a 34-day devastating war with Israel.

"Aoun refused to get involved in this issue. However, security agencies there understood that one of the two prisoners is still alive and the second had passed away," the report said without further elaboration.

Aoun is allied with Hizbullah, which leads a campaign backed by Syria and Iran against Premier Fouad Saniora's majority government.

The two Israeli soldiers held by Hizbullah are Ehud Goldwaser, 31, and Eldad Regev, 26.

Hizbullah had said it was prepared to swap them for Lebanese and Arab prisoners held by Israel.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 1:40 AM