Ya Libnan Political News: Lebanon: Prisoner swap marks the failure of Israel's policies

Published: Tuesday, 1 July, 2008 @ 8:52 PM in Beirut (GMT+2) Beirut- Lebanon said on Tuesday a prisoner swap deal reached between Israel and Hezbollah marked a "big failure" for the Jewish state which had earlier refused to agree to such a plan. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert secured cabinet approval on Sunday for a prisoner swap with Hezbollah under which two soldiers held by the guerrilla group, believed to be dead, would be recovered. The capture of army reservists Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev in a cross border raid in July 2006 triggered a 34-day war in Lebanon, with Olmert ruling out talks on their return. He later relented, negotiating through a U.N.-appointed mediator. "The release of the prisoners through a German mediator, after this long time and according to the conditions published in the media, marks a big... [read full story]