The New Nation - Internet Edition

AP, Rosh Hanikra

Lebanese guerrillas on Wednesday handed over two black coffins believed to contain the bodies of Israeli soldiers whose capture started a war, as a prisoner exchange with Israel got under way.

The Israeli army said that forensics teams have begun tests to identify the two bodies. Army spokeswoman Avital Leibovich said the process could take several hours.

Family and friends outside the homes of the two soldiers burst into tears as they watched the handover on television. If the bodies are confirmed to be those of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, Israel will turn over five Lebanese prisoners to Lebanon's Hezbollah guerrilla group - including a militant convicted in what is perceived here as a monstrous attack.

The servicemen had been presumed dead, but there had been no confirmation. Their Hezbollah captors had withheld any information about them since they were captured on July 12, 2006, in a cross-border raid that touched off a monthlong war between Israel and Hezbollah. "We are handing over the two Israeli soldiers that were captured by the resistance t and whose fate has been unknown until this moment," senior Hezbollah security official Wafik Safa said. "Now you know their fate."

An aunt of Regev's sank to the ground when she saw the coffins appear on a small TV hooked up outside the soldier's father's house. Some 50 friends, neighbors and family sobbed, rocked back and forth in prayer or pulled their hair.

"Nasrallah, you will pay," several vowed, referring to Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah. Other people in the crowd criticized Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, saying the soldiers died for nothing.

Olmert waged the much-criticized war against Hezbollah in 2006.

The family's neighbor, Simona Adda, 68, said her children had grown up with Regev. "It's the saddest day for Israel. They kept us waiting until the last second to learn the fate of our sons," she said, then burst out crying.

The sorrow that swept across Israel with the images of the coffins contrasted sharply with the hero's welcome that awaited convicted killer Samir Kantar upon his return to a homeland he left 29 years ago to set out on his deadly mission.

Hezbollah supporters set up a makeshift stage in the coastal town of Naqoura and a drum corps awaited the prisoners' return. On the platform stood a large photograph of a weeping Israeli woman.

A nearby sign read, "Israel is shedding tears of pain." Another read: "Lebanon is shedding tears of joy."

An official ceremony was to follow at Beirut Airport with Lebanon's president, prime minister and parliament speaker in attendendance. Nasrallah was to address what is expected to be a huge celebration at the group's stronghold south of Beirut.

In the Gaza Strip, controlled by the violently anti-Israel Hamas group, people celebrated in the streets and handed out sweets in support of Hezbollah.