Egypt says working for release of Israeli soldier

By Ari Rabinovitch and Will Rasmussen

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt (Reuters) - Egypt assured Israel on Tuesday the Gaza Strip's only border crossing to the outside world would remain closed until a deal was reached with Hamas to free an Israeli soldier, Israeli officials said.

Under an Egyptian-brokered truce that took effect last week, Israel agreed to ease gradually its economic blockade of the Gaza Strip, but it demanded the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Hamas-controlled territory remain closed until the soldier, Gilad Shalit, is freed.

The five-day old truce in Gaza was shaken on Tuesday when militants in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip fired at least two rockets into southern Israel after Israeli troops killed two Palestinians in the West Bank city of Nablus.

"We received assurances that Rafah crossing will not open until Shalit's case is solved," said a senior Israeli official who took part in talks between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

Mubarak, however, said he does not want to link any possible prisoner exchange deal with the truce.

Asked if he can assure the Jewish state that the Rafah crossing would remain closed until Shalit was freed, Mubarak told Israeli television: "Do not get me into the details."

He later said: "Do not link them together and ruin everything. I will not speak about this issue. We are exerting efforts for Shalit and efforts for the truce but do not link this with that."

Mubarak's comments were carried by Egypt's state-run Middle East News Agency (MENA).

Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri rejected any link between the Rafah border issue and the fate of Shalit.

"Rafah crossing is a Palestinian-Egyptian crossing and will be reopened in isolation from Shalit's case," he said.

Egypt has been trying to mediate Shalit's release since he was captured on the Gaza border in June 2006.

Israel and the Islamist movement Hamas have not been able to agree on all the conditions, such as which Palestinian prisoners Israel would free in return.

During their meeting, Olmert asked Mubarak to lead "intensive negotiations" with Hamas to free Shalit, said the senior Israeli official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

EXCHANGE OF PRISONERS

Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal said last week Shalit's release depended on Israel freeing Palestinians, though the Olmert government has balked at many of the names on the list.