Barak: Keep working to free Gilad Shalit

JERUSALEM, Nov. 1 (UPI) -- Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Saturday the country's interim government should keep working toward securing the release of a kidnapped soldier.

Israeli Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit was kidnapped by militants from the Gaza Strip in a cross-border raid in June 2006. The Israeli government has started negotiating a prisoner exchange with the militant group, Haaretz reported.

Barak said Saturday he was leading government efforts to bring Shalit home. He acknowledged that some Israelis may get "butterflies in their stomach" when the government reveals the final list of prisoners whom Israel is prepared to release.

On the issue of indirect peace talks with Syria, which outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has expressed an interest in renewing, Barak said Syria "can be a partner for peace."

"We mustn't squander this opportunity," he said.