Israel to free 250 Palestinian prisoners
Palestinian women holds framed pictures of various relatives, which are reported to be held in Israeli jails during a weekly protest demanding the release of prisoners outside the Red Cross office in Gaza City Monday, July, 16, 2007. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas were to meet in Jerusalem Monday, with the international community looking over their shoulders and trying to nudge the two sides to talk about the core issues blocking the way to a fully-fledged peace treaty and Palestinian statehood. Olmert recently pledged to free 250 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails and improve life in the West Bank, where Abbas' Fatah rules, while Hamas holds sway in the politically and economically isolated Gaza Strip.(AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)16 July 2007
JERUSALEM -Israel will free 250 Palestinian prisoners later this week — nearly all of them from the Fatah faction of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, a spokesman for the Israeli prime minister said Monday.
The prisoner release, intended to bolster Abbas in his struggle against the Islamic militant Hamas, will take place on Friday, said Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's spokesman, Jacob Galanti. He said 85 percent of the prisoners would come from Abbas' Fatah faction, with the remainder coming from smaller Palestinian parties. None will come from Hamas, he said.
Galanti made the announcement after a two-hour meeting between the Israeli and Palestinian leaders at Olmert's official residence in Jerusalem.
He said the prisoners have been involved in violence against Israel, but none "has blood on their hands," an Israeli reference to direct involvement in deadly attacks. He said the release would take place at spots throughout the West Bank.
Olmert and Abbas also agreed to meet again in two weeks in the West Bank town of Jericho. It would be the first meeting of the men on Palestinian territory.
Olmert promised to release the prisoners at a summit with Abbas last month, but the prisoner release was delayed while Israeli officials finalized a list of people they said could be freed without threatening the country's security. Israel holds some 10,000 Palestinian prisoners.
Israel has been working to bolster Abbas, a moderate who favors peace talks, since Hamas defeated Abbas' forces and violently seized control of the Gaza Strip last month.
Abbas has formed a Western-backed emergency government based in the West Bank, while the Hamas rulers of Gaza face deep international isolation.
JERUSALEM -Israel will free 250 Palestinian prisoners later this week — nearly all of them from the Fatah faction of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, a spokesman for the Israeli prime minister said Monday.
The prisoner release, intended to bolster Abbas in his struggle against the Islamic militant Hamas, will take place on Friday, said Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's spokesman, Jacob Galanti. He said 85 percent of the prisoners would come from Abbas' Fatah faction, with the remainder coming from smaller Palestinian parties. None will come from Hamas, he said.
Galanti made the announcement after a two-hour meeting between the Israeli and Palestinian leaders at Olmert's official residence in Jerusalem.
He said the prisoners have been involved in violence against Israel, but none "has blood on their hands," an Israeli reference to direct involvement in deadly attacks. He said the release would take place at spots throughout the West Bank.
Olmert and Abbas also agreed to meet again in two weeks in the West Bank town of Jericho. It would be the first meeting of the men on Palestinian territory.
Olmert promised to release the prisoners at a summit with Abbas last month, but the prisoner release was delayed while Israeli officials finalized a list of people they said could be freed without threatening the country's security. Israel holds some 10,000 Palestinian prisoners.
Israel has been working to bolster Abbas, a moderate who favors peace talks, since Hamas defeated Abbas' forces and violently seized control of the Gaza Strip last month.
Abbas has formed a Western-backed emergency government based in the West Bank, while the Hamas rulers of Gaza face deep international isolation.
posted by HRM Deborah of Israel and the Messenger of Peace at 4:08 PM
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