feared he would remain in captivity for 'many more years.' He said he was 'very excited' to be headed home and that he missed his family and friends."

Shalit, now 25, "was abducted in June 2006 by militants who tunneled into Israel from the Gaza Strip and surprised his tank crew, killing two of his comrades," Haaretz reminds us. "He was whisked back into Gaza and held incommunicado until his release."

In the interview with Egyptian TV, Haaretz adds, Shalit said "that he had been treated well by his Hamas captors during the five years he was held hostage."

At Palestinian Authority headquarters in Ramallah, it's a day "of happiness for families" and a day of "popularity for Hamas," NPR's Peter Kenyon tells our Newscast desk from the scene.

On Morning Edition,given this opportunity when I had the chance to finish my MSc in Civil Engineering at the University of Nottingham, in the United Kingdom. After graduating, I moved back to Shanghai and started off as a structural design engineer. I realized I didn’t want to work with computer software all the time, so I became a project engineer for consulting and general contracting companies. I started to develop an interest in water park projects and wanted to realign my career accordingly. I then discovered WhiteWater and was attracted by their colourful products and international projects. Previous work experience had allowed me to enhance my skills in construction and design management, bidding, procurement, and communication. When I joined WhiteWater as a Project Manager, these skills provided me with a