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Netanyahu hides prisoner swap details from his cabinet

May 4, 2020 at 12:44 pm

Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu, 10 March 2020 [Twitter]

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is said to be hiding from his cabinet the details of the ongoing talks with Hamas about a prisoner swap, Quds Press reported on Sunday. Members of the cabinet are believed to be angry with him.

Cabinet ministers asked for information about the talks from the Israeli national security commission, but the latter abstained from giving any details.

According to Israel Hayom, the government might pay a high price for the deal, as happened with the deal to release Sergeant Gilad Shalit in 2011. “However, the officials participating in laying down the terms of the deal said that this one will be responsible and Israel will not repeat the mistakes of the past,” it said.

The newspaper added that it had obtained information from sources who said that the ongoing talks about the deal are serious and started before the coronavirus outbreak. The assistance that Israel is offering to the Gaza Strip due to the pandemic is likely to give the deal a push.

At the same time, the newspaper pointed out that there is opposition to any deal from the families of Israelis killed by Palestinian resistance factions.

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