Mr. Noam Shalit, the father of captive soldier Gilad Shalit, on Sunday is heading for Washington as he continues efforts to obtain his son’s release. Gilad was taken into Hamas captivity in June 2006 during a cross-border terror attack at Kerem Shalom.

Mr. Shalit will meet with administration officials including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, as well as a number of elected representatives.

There were reports signaling Gilad would be released during the final days of the Olmert administration but this never materialized. Hamas officials have released messages that there would be no compromise on the list of 450 terrorists submitted to Israel for a prisoner release for Shalit.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in the coming days is expected to announce his selection to replace Ofir Dekel as his emissary dealing with talks towards closing a prisoner release deal.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)