JERUSALEM MEDIA REACTION (12/22): Prisoner exchange deal

UNCLAS JERUSALEM 002303 SIPDIS STATE PASS BBG STATE FOR NEA, NEA/IPA, NEA/PPD WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE, SIT ROOM NSC CMC WASHINGTON DC FOR POLAD JERUSALEM ALSO FOR ICD LONDON FOR HKANONA AND POL - TSOU PARIS ALSO FOR POL ROME FOR MFO E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL KMDR KPAL KWBG KPAO IS SUBJECT: JERUSALEM MEDIA REACTION (12/22): Prisoner exchange deal still up in the air -------------- Main Stories: -------------- The three dailies report that the Israeli cabinet will continue discussions today regarding the prisoner exchange deal. Ma'an and Al Jazeera report that the Israeli cabinet will announce its decision later today. It is reported that Hamas officials expect to have the deal concluded before the end of the year. Independent daily Al-Quds' lead headline highlights Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's insistence on deporting some of the prisoners to Gaza or outside the country. Independent daily Al-Ayyam reports that Hamas officials refuse to deport any of the released prisoners. Palestinian Authority (PA) official daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida front pages an article citing Israeli daily Yediot Ahronot publishing the names of nine prisoners that Hamas wants released but Israel refuses to approve. Independent news outlet Ma'an reports that the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Central Council appointed Minister of Prisoners Issa Qareqe to launch an investigation into the reported organ theft of deceased Palestinians by Israeli officials in the 1990s. Al-Ayyam reports that settlers attacked and threw stones at a Palestinian home in Sheikh Jarrah in East Jerusalem last night. PA presidency representative Rafiq Al-Husseini visited the family and condemned the attack. Citing DPA, Al-Quds reports that PLO Chief Negotiator Saeb Erekat noted that Egyptian Chief Intelligence Omar Suleiman asked Israeli decision makers to take decisive measures to stop settlement activity in order to pursue peace negotiations with the Palestinians. -------------- BLOCK QUOTES: -------------- Al-Quds runs an editorial under the title "We Need an International Investigation After the Israeli Official Admission of Organ Theft" calling for an international committee to look into the issue, punish officials responsible for the theft, and enact measures to prevent such incidents from happening in future. The writer questions whether the international community will do this or continue to have double standards in regards to its bias against Palestinians. RUBINSTEIN N