'Cohen had supported deal to release Gilad Schalit'

Ex-Shin Bet head Yaakov Perry: Incoming chief supported deal to release the kidnapped IDF soldier, is "a professional with moderate views."

By JPOST.COM STAFF, HERB KEINON, YAAKOV KATZ
Yoram Cohen 311 (photo credit: Channel 10)
Yoram Cohen 311
(photo credit: Channel 10)
Former Shin Bet head (Israel Security Agency) Yaakov Perry on Tuesday morning said that incoming chief Yoram Cohen supported a deal to release kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Schalit in the past, according to an interview with Army Radio.
"As far as I know, his position was that a deal should be made," Perry explained. "I can only hope that the prime minister will project that a deal can be made, including the possibility of releasing murderers from prison."
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Cohen is "a professional with moderate views" and that, "The fact that he is a religious person should not interfere, though he is the first person to enter this position wearing a kippa," Perry told Army Radio.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu announced on Monday night that veteran Cohen will succeed Yuval Diskin as head of the security organization.
Cohen made history as the first religiously-observant Jew to be appointed the head of one of Israel’s security apparatuses.
He served as a deputy to current Shin Bet chief Yuval Diskin (who will step down in May) from 2006 to 2008, after serving in a variety of posts within the secretive agency – including head of the department charged with preventing Arab and Iranian espionage in Israel.