Israel confirmed Saturday it had accepted a Turkish offer to mediate in possible talks with Syria, while stressing it did not mean the Jewish state had agreed to accept the recent peace overtures from Damascus.

Under the German-brokered prisoner exchange announced Saturday, Israel agreed to release over 400 Palestinian and Arab prisoners in exchange for the return of an Israeli businessman kidnapped in October 2000, and three IDF soldiers, widely presumed dead.

The swap is likely to take place on Thursday in Germany.

In a secondary deal, Israel has committed to turn over Samir Kantar, a veteran Lebanese prisoner jailed for life in Israel over the murder of an Israeli family in 1979, in return for "concrete proof" about the fate of the missing airman Ron Arad.

Israel television said such proof would have to include "unequivocal evidence" of his fate, such as DNA samples showing he was still alive, or other pathological evidence if he had died or been killed.

Senior Israeli security officials were meeting Sunday to iron out the technical details of the exchange, media reports said.

"The important thing from our point of view is that we brought our boys home," foreign ministry spokesman Jonathan Peled told AFP.

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Israel had taken the right decision.

"The decision over the prisoner exchange deal was not an easy decision. I think we took the right, ethical and responsible decision," army radio quoted him as saying before a cabinet meeting.

"On this day, we all embrace the families of the prisoners of war, and Israel will do everything to ensure the rest of the prisoners and the disappeared will be returned home soon."

Among the 36 Lebanese and Arab prisoners set for release were Sheikh Abdel Karim Obeid and Mustafa Dirani, who were captured by Israel in 1989 and 1994 and held in exchange for news of Arad, the German embassy said.

Another 400 Palestinian prisoners would also be released and Israel would return the corpses of 59 Lebanese nationals killed in action, it added.

Israeli was expected to publish a list of the Palestinians on Monday, at least 48 hours ahead of the swap, in order to allow for last-minute appeals to the High Court, public radio said.