BICOM

The London based al-Hayat newspaper reported that a second round of indirect talks between Israeli and Hamas representatives to negotiate the release of captured IDF soldier Gilad Shalit took place yesterday. According to the report, the first round of meetings took place last week. The report also said that the two sides were located in an Egyptian intelligence building in separate rooms with Egyptian mediators going back and forth coordinating the proceedings. The al-Hayat article reports that Hamas military wing leader, Ahmed al-Ja’abari, represented the Hamas side and had the support from the movement’s leadership to proceed with talks.

A delegation of senior Hamas members, headed by politburo chief Khaled Mashaal, is set to arrive in Cairo today  – around the same time that the third round of negotiations between Israel and Hamas over a prisoner exchange deal is expected to begin in the Egyptian capital, the London-based Al-Hayat newspaper is reporting. 

The last time Israeli and Hamas officials met on the issue of a prisoner exchange deal was in December 2009.

In related events, around 20 Israeli demonstrators calling for Shalit’s release blocked a bus carrying visitors of Palestinians prisoners on their way to the Nafha prison in Israel yesterday. The demonstrators were emphasizing the point that Palestinian prisoners are allowed visiting rights, while no Red Cross teams or family have been able to visit Gilad Shalit since his capture.

Meanwhile, in unrelated events in Gaza, Israeli aircrafts launched air strikes earlier this morning in response to a Grad rocket that was fired from Gaza towards Beer Sheva. One Palestinian gunman was reported to have been killed and five wounded in the air strike, according to Hamas medical sources. The IDF spokesperson unit confirmed the air strikes on four targets in Gaza and said that prior to the strikes several terrorist cells were spotted attempting to fire a rocket into Israel.