Israel and Egypt have agreed to an exchange of prisoners of war and the exchange is expected to take place on the Gaza strip Sunday, the Daily Herald reported today.
The significance of this move is considerable, the newspaper’s diplomatic correspondent noted, despite the fact that the number of prisoners involved is small. “It is the first constructive gesture by either nation for many months,” he wrote. The Israelis are believed to be holding some 70 Egyptian soldiers and civilians, while the Egyptians hold six Israelis. The Herald gave credit for negotiating the exchange to an International Red Cross official, David de Traz, a citizen of Switzerland.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
