Hizbullah sources informed the al Sharq al Awsat daily that after Eid al Fitr, German broker Ernest Orlaw will arrive in Beirut, carrying with him new Israeli proposals regarding the swap deal that was stalled due to cabinet's refusal to release Samir Kuntar.
Samir Kuntar is jailed in Israel since a 1979 attack in the northern city of Nahariya, in which he killed three members of the same family and an Israeli policeman.
The sources on Wednesday were quoted as saying by the pan- Arab newspaper that Hizbullah had been inclined to declare the failure of the negotiations following the Israeli cabinet's decision, but decided to give another "final chance" to negotiations, following a personal request from the German official to Hizbullah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah. Orlaw reportedly assumed he would be able to change Israel's stance in this matter.
Nasrallah agreed but under the condition the negotiations would not be long. He told Orlaw that Hizbullah would give an additional three weeks until it announced it is free from negotiations and free to act to release all the detainees by "all means", hinting that additional Israelis could be captured.
This report came as the Israeli official responsible for the contacts, Ilan Biran, left for Germany.
According to media reports, Israel is expected to offer a few options to resolve the Kuntar issue, including moving him to a jail in Germany or limiting his prison term to 25 years. (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
