A senior Islamic Hamas official on Wednesday expressed his movement's readiness to resume the indirect negotiations in Cairo to finalize a prisoner exchange deal with Israel.

Osama al-Muzeini, who is involved in the file of captive Israeli corporal Gilad Shalit, told reporters that "Hamas is ready to resume the indirect negotiations based on the movement's demands to finalize the deal."

"Our demand is to free 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, who serve long term sentences in prison, on two stages, in addition to freeing women and children as well as all Hamas lawmakers and ministers," said al-Muzeini.

Shalit has been held hostage in Gaza since he was abducted by Hamas and two other militants groups in an armed attack on an Israeli army base southeast of the Gaza Strip in the summer of 2006.

Hamas, which leads the indirect talks with Israel, insists on the release of 1,450 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails in exchange for freedom of Shalit. Several rounds of talks, sponsored by Egypt, had failed to finalize the swap deal.

The former Israeli government of Ehud Olmert rejected Hamas demands to release all the prisoners in a list that Hamas presented to Israel through Egypt and accused Hamas of thwarting the deal.

In late May, new Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appointed former senior Mossad intelligence agency operative Haggai Hadas to coordinate efforts to seek the return of Shalit.

Hadas replaces Ofer Dekel, who stepped down on April 21 from the post in charge of negotiations with Hamas which rules the Gaza Strip.

(Xinhua News Agency June 4, 2009)