A CONTROVERSIAL prisoner swap between Israel and Hamas was underway today which will see more than 1,000 Palestinian inmates freed in exchange for ONE soldier.
An SUV sped Israeli sergeant Gilad Shalit across the border from Gaza to Egypt today after more than five years in captivity.
In the first stage of the elaborate deal � mediated by Egypt � 477 prisoners including 27 women were being released, to be followed by another 550 in a couple of months. In the five-and-a-half years Shalit was held, there has been an Israeli blockade of Gaza and numerous failed negotiations.
Shalit, 25, was expected to be flown to an air base in central Israel to be reunited with his family and to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
His dad, Noam, was asked whether it was the happiest day of his life.
He said: "Yes, you can make that assumption." In Israel, there has been widespread criticism and court appeals against the release of the prisoners.
Nearly 300 were serving lengthy sentences for involvement in deadly attacks.
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