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Israel

Netanyahu: There's no Gilad Shalit deal yet

Israel’s Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has slammed reports from 'foreign media' of a prisoner swap deal to rescue kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit

November 23, 2009 15:22
<b>August 30:</B> A rally marking the 24th birthday of Gilad Shalit attracted thousands of people in Jerusalem. <i>Read more <A href="http://www.thejc.com/news/israel-news/37367/gilad-shalits-fifth-birthday-captivity-marked">here<A></i>

ByJessica Elgot, Jessica Elgot

1 min read

Israel’s Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has slammed reports of a prisoner swap deal to rescue kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit, claiming any deal would have to be approved by the cabinet.

Mr Netanyahu said that reports that a deal wth Hamas, for the release of the 23-year-old soldier, was imminent, were “not credible and some of them are even intentionally distorted.”

He said that no deal had been finalised, and blamed “foreign media” for whipping up a storm around the negotiations.

“Efforts to secure Gilad Shalit's release are continuously under way, out of the media's view, and we have no intentions of commenting beyond that," said Mr Netanyahu.