Detainee's family hopes for swap

Beirut: The sister of the longest-held Lebanese prisoner in Israel yesterday said she hoped the capture of two Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah fighters would finally secure his release.

"This is the news we have been waiting for all this time," said Lamise Qantar, 29, who was a toddler when her brother Samir was captured in.

"Every time there was an operation in the south we would hope that they had managed to kidnap an Israeli soldier and it didn't happen until today. They have surprised us with the best news in the world."

In 2004, Hezbollah and Israel exchanged the bodies of three Israeli soldiers kidnapped in 2000 and an abducted Israeli businessman for the release of 400 Palestinian and 23 Lebanese and Arab prisoners in a German-negotiated deal.

But Samir Qantar stayed in jail, although Hezbollah leader Shaikh Hassan Nasrallah promised then that he would be released in a second phase of prisoner exchange talks. But they made little progress.

"Two years ago, the swap was bitter-sweet for us. We were happy that so many detainees were freed but sad that Samir was not among them," Lamise said.

"We never lost hope that he would come home though. I knew that they would not leave my brother in jail and that helped through the difficult days, especially in recent times when there has been a lot of talk about disarming the resistance."

Israel has linked Samir's release to the fate of airman Ron Arad, shot down in 1986.