Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Wednesday there was no deal for now between Israel and the Islamist group Hamas on freeing an Israeli soldier held in Gaza. Abbas, speaking after talks with President Hosni Mubarak, also said a European Union call for talks with Israel on the status of Jerusalem was important but fell short of Palestinian expectations after changes to an earlier draft.
Egypt has been trying to broker a deal in which Hamas, which runs the Gaza Strip, would release Shalit in exchange for Israel freeing of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. "The two sides have stopped at the details concerning the numbers and nature of people to be released ... I can tell you that for now there is no deal," Abbas told reporters.
The European Union on Tuesday urged Israel to share Jerusalem with the Palestinians as part of a Middle East peace agreement and make the holy city the capital of two states, a position the current Israeli government rejects.