Gaza City - The radical Hamas movement said Saturday it would not reduce its demand for the release of at least 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for a captive Israeli soldier.

"Hamas has demanded the release of at least 1,000 prisoners who are serving long-term sentences," said Osama al-Muzini, a Hamas leader based in the Gaza Strip.

Last week, an Israeli ministerial committee agreed to release 450 prisoners in the first phase of the swap once Corporal Gilad Shalit is handed over to Egyptian mediators.

The new Israeli offer agreed to half of the names Hamas had demanded be freed, which al-Muzini described as "inadequate." He said the 1,000 names were the "minimum" demand Hamas would accept.

Hamas and two aligned groups kidnapped Shalit in a cross-border raid on his base just to the south-east of the Gaza Strip in 2006.(dpa)