Lebanon’s Hezbollah said on Wednesday it had agreed to a United Nations-mediated deal to exchange prisoners with Israel and expected the swap to take place about the middle of this month.
”We have accepted this agreement and consider it a great accomplishment,” said Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, leader of the Iranian-backed group, confirming Hezbollah’s acceptance of a deal approved by Israel on Sunday.
The exchange should take place around July 15 or ”a little before or a little after”, Nasrallah said. ”I think in one to two weeks the issue will be completed.”
Under the deal, Hezbollah will return two Israeli soldiers whose capture on July 12 2006 triggered a 34-day war with the Jewish state. They are believed dead but Nasrallah refused to give any information on their condition.
Hezbollah seized the soldiers during a raid into northern Israel, saying it planned to use them to negotiate an exchange.
”We have completed the whole mission,” Nasrallah said, in reference to the group’s aim of securing the release of all Lebanese held by Israel.
The Jewish state will hand over five Lebanese prisoners and the remains of about 200 Lebanese, Palestinians and other Arabs who infiltrated northern Israel. — Reuters