The Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar, which is affiliated with the Hezbollah terror group, reported Monday that as part of ongoing talks between Israel and Lebanon on a permanent agreement, Israel has proposed a “civilian prisoner exchange.”
According to the report, the deal would transfer the remains of Jews buried in cemeteries in Beirut and Sidon for burial in Israel, in exchange for the release of Lebanese civilians arrested during the war and held in Israel. The request stems from the desire of families in Israel to bring the remains of their loved ones for burial in the country and to be able to visit their graves—something that has been impossible for decades due to the state of war between the countries.
The report added that Israel’s proposal refers to releasing only some of the Lebanese detainees, with a clear exclusion of Hezbollah operatives from the deal. This follows a report last week on the Saudi channel A-Sharq News that the Rome talks included a separate “legal” track dealing with those Lebanese prisoners held by Israel who are not Hezbollah operatives.