Gilad Shalit to be released

Israel and Hamas have sealed the deal that would free captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. "We have concluded arduous negotiations with Hamas to release Gilad Shalit. He will be coming home in the next few days," Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at a press conference today following a meeting with his cabinet.

A corporal in the IDF, Shalit was seized by Hamas militants in a cross-border raid in June 2006.

A recent precedent case was Hezbollah's release of soldiers Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser in exchange for five Lebanese captives and the bodies of 199 Lebanese and Palestinian militants. For nearly two years, Hezbollah did not provide information on the condition of Regev and Goldwasser, who were killed in the course of their capture in July 2006.

Hamas has not provided information on Shalit's condition since releasing a video showing Shalit holding a newspaper dating to Sept. 14, 2009. Reuters reports that 1,000 Palestinians militants will be released by Israel in exchange for Shalit.

The first involves the release of 450 for the soldier, with the remaining 550 to be freed later.

Germany and Egypt have been leading the efforts to broker a deal.