by Saud Abu Ramadan

    GAZA, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- A senior leader of Hamas said on Wednesday that his movement began to study the Israeli response to a long-awaited prisoner swap deal between the two sides, and Hamas needs several days to present a response.

    Mahmoud al-Zahar, one of the Hamas leaders who negotiate with Israel indirectly to complete the deal, told Israel Radio that the German mediator arrived in Gaza on Tuesday morning, and handed Hamas leaders the Israeli response to the deal.

    "Hamas needs several days to study the Israeli response and then we will hand our answer to Israel through the German mediator," said al-Zahar.

    He revealed that the German mediator would head back to Germany later on Wednesday for the new year holiday, adding that "Hamas response will be ready before he (the mediator) decides to get back to the region."

    Al-Zahar did not say if his movement would accept or reject theIsraeli response, but he said Hamas leadership in both Gaza and Damascus will study the Israeli response carefully.

    On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu greenlighted the continuation of talks on the prisoner swap deal with Hamas, saying Israel prefers to expel around 127 West Bank prisoners to Gaza or abroad.

    Hamas movement, whose militants captured the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in June 2006 during a cross-border attack, demands the release of 1,000 Palestinian and Arab prisoners from Israeli jails in exchange for Shalit.

    Palestinian analysts believe that negotiation about the prisoner swap deal has entered final stage, adding that the only remaining argument is related to the number of prisoners Israel would expel out of the country.

    "The swap deal between Hamas and Israel has ripen," said Mustafa al-Sawaf, a Gaza-based political analyst closed to Hamas, adding that "Israel had met more than 80 percent of Hamas demands."

    Hamas, however, said it should be the prisoners who decide whether to be expelled to the Gaza Strip or abroad.

    "Expelling the prisoners to the Gaza Strip or out of the country remains the final obstacle to the agreement," said al-Sawaf, who said he expected that Hamas will not accept the deportation of a big number of prisoners, but will "accept what the prisoners themselves decide."

    Meanwhile, a Palestinian source said on Wednesday that Hamas had asked the German mediator for a period of time to study the Israeli response.

    "Hamas leaders had asked for several days in order to study the Israeli response," said the source, adding that "Hamas leadership began to hold internal meetings to study the Israeli response carefully."

    "If Hamas' answer to the Israeli response is positive, a Hamas delegation would immediately head to Damascus to meet Hamas leaders there to agree on issuing the swap deal," added the source.

    The source also said the German mediator "will be back to the region on the first week of January to receive Hamas response."

    According to the London-based al-Mustaqbal newspaper, Hamas has agreed with the Israel's demand that 123 released Palestinian prisoners be barred from the West Bank within the framework of a prisoner swap for the release of Shalit.

    According to the report, which was published on Wednesday, 97 of the prisoners will be released to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, more than 20 prisoners will be expelled to Qatar and the rest will be expelled to EU countries.