Shalit mediator threatens to resign

JERUSALEM, Dec. 19 (UPI) -- A German mediator will resign if Hamas and Israel cannot agree within three weeks to the release of kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, officials said.

The mediator, who was not publicly identified, is frustrated with the pace of the talks, Al-Ahram quoted Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas as saying Saturday.

Speaking for himself, Abbas said he supports an exchange of Shalit for Palestinian prisoners.

Israel and Hamas officials have been unable to agree on the release of more than 50 Palestinian prisoners, including senior Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti, convicted by Israel of killing Israeli civilians and soldiers in a Palestinian uprising in 2002, The Jerusalem Post reported Saturday.

Shalit has been held in Gaza by Hamas forces since his capture June 25, 2006, in a cross-border raid.