Israel Matzav

Israel - Lebanon prisoner exchange?

Agence France Presse is reporting that Israel and Hezbullah may begin a 'prisoner exchange' today.

Israel and Lebanon may carry out a prisoner swap on Monday, with the Jewish state handing over the bodies of two Hezbollah fighters and a prisoner in exchange for the body of a Israeli soldier, a security source told AFP.

"An exchange of bodies and a prisoner swap could take place this afternoon at the Naqura crossing betweeen Israel and Lebanon," said the source, who did not wish to be identified.

He said the two Hezbollah fighters died during the 34-day war last summer between the Shiite militant group and Israel in Lebanon, triggered by the militant group's capture of two Israeli soldiers in July.

It was not known whether the body of the Israeli soldier being returned belonged to one of those two servicemen, Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser.

"We do not know when this soldier was killed," the source said.

An army report released last December said that the two soldiers were wounded, one seriously and another moderately, in the cross-border attack that led to their capture.

Israel is also seeking the return of the bodies of five soldiers which have never been recovered since their deaths during Israel's 1982 onslaught in Lebanon.

As long as we're turning over bodies and not live terrorists, I won't complain. But we've been down this path too many times before. I'll believe it when it happens.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 3:01 PM