JERUSALEM, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- The media in Israel and the Palestinian territories has focused on one item above all else this week, the likelihood of an imminent swap of prisoners.

    Israel is expected to release some 1,000 Palestinians currently held in jails around Israel in exchange for Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier who was taken away into the Gaza Strip in a cross-border attack over three years ago by Palestinian militants.

    However, reports from Damascus suggested that internal differences remain in Hamas about the deal, and meanwhile many Israelis oppose the package, arguing that they cannot accept the release of convicted murderers.     

    DEAL IN THE PIPELINE

    Hamas and Israel have been talking indirectly via Egyptian and German intermediaries for the majority of the time since Shalit was captured in June 2006.

    On several occasions, at least one of the parties thought agreement was at hand before last-minute hurdles dashed those hopes.

    However, media speculation, particularly in Israel, suggested this time that the deal really could be clinched, though not as imminently as originally expected.

    When reports of a deal being very close were first published at the start of the week, it was suggested that the prisoners would be reunited with their families in time for the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha this Friday.

    Yet it now appears that if the arrangement is to go ahead, it will only take place next week at the earliest.

    Hamas officials from Gaza and Damascus were in Egypt on Tuesday trying to finalize their side of the exchange. They flew to the Syrian capital for further talks with the movement's leadership in exile on Tuesday evening.

    Reports from Damascus suggested that there is some disunity about the swap, with the Gazans in favor of pushing ahead and meeting the Israeli terms on the one hand and the Damascus-based political elite of the organization being more reticent on the other hand.

    Meanwhile, the Israeli security cabinet met on Wednesday, as it does each week, and the Shalit deal, as it is called in Israel, was expected to be high on the agenda.

    Also on Wednesday, Shalit's father, Noam, was slated to have meetings with government ministers and Israel's two chief rabbis. The latter meeting comes in the wake of an announcement by some right-wing rabbis that they will fight against the deal.     

    OUTSTANDING ISSUES

    While both Hamas and Israeli negotiators are keeping their cards close to their chest, there have been numerous reports as to the areas of outstanding disagreement that have prevented the deal from going ahead.

    Hamas is seeking the release of Ahmad Saadat, head of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and Marwan Barghouti, a senior official in Hamas' rival movement, Fatah. Barghouti is tipped to succeed Mahmoud Abbas as the next Palestinian leader. Israel initially rejected that demand, but some reports suggested Israel has agreed to free Barghouti.

    Israel is refusing to release several dozen prisoners whom it believes were "arch terrorists," guilty of killing scores of Israeli civilians.

    Israel was also said to be against freeing Israeli-Arabs and Palestinians living in East Jerusalem, yet some reports suggested that Hamas and Israel have resolved their differences.

    Israel is also insisting that some of the prisoners not be repatriated but rather be exiled. Hamas was said to object to some of the names on that list.

    Given all of these obstacles, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the media on Tuesday that there was no deal yet.

    In any case, this is all guesswork, warns Jonathan Fighel, a senior research at the International Institute for Counter terrorism at Israel's Interdisciplinary Center.

    "Everything that is being published is in the realm of speculation and rumors. There's also a psychological war going on here with media spin. There's only one thing for sure. There's no rational public debate about the question of the price of the deal," said Fighel.

    In Israel, it is pressure groups for and against the deal that are trying to shout the loudest. Fighel compared it to the voting systems on American Idol and other reality TV shows.

    The price is also important to the families of the Palestinians currently being held by Israel.

    While all the focus is on those prisoners that Israel describes as "having blood on their hands," those released are also likely to include Hamas politicians arrested by Israel at various points during the last three years.

    Many of them are represented by Palestinian lawyer Faris Abu al-Hasam. He told Xinhua on Wednesday that he understands why Israel has to defend itself and arrests those behind attacks. However, he argued that many of the students, women and politicians should not have been arrested in the first place by Israel, and certainly not incarcerated.

    "What I don't understand is all this pressure on people who don't carry out attacks... Because of Israeli actions against Palestinian Legislative Council members, Palestinians no longer believe in elections, law or peace negotiations," said Abu al-Hasam.     

    NEXT STEPS

    If the negotiators on both sides agree, then the matter will be voted on by the full Israeli cabinet. It is understood that a majority of ministers will back the plan. Netanyahu has also promised that the deal will also be discussed in Israel's parliament, the Knesset.

    At that point, another obstacle awaits. The list of Palestinian prisoners to be released will be published for two days in Israel. Any Israelis objecting to names on the list have the right to appeal against the deal.

    Assuming the appeals are rejected, Israel would initially release as many as 450 prisoners, and Shalit would be moved to Egypt. The second stage would see Shalit arrive in Israel and several hundred more Palestinians reunite with their families. Additional Palestinian prisoners could be released at a later stage.

    However, both sides realize that would not be the end of the story. Israel still holds many more Palestinian prisoners, and Hamas and other Palestinians factions will likely seek to capture other Israelis in order negotiate more deals like the one that might come to fruition next week.

Special Report: Palestine-Israel Conflicts