Israel cabinet okays Palestine prisoner release
Afp, Jerusalem
The government yesterday approved the contentious release of long-serving Palestinian and Israeli Arab prisoners, reportedly including some with Israeli blood on their hands, to coincide with renewed peace talks, public radio said.
It said the 22-member cabinet approved Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposal to free prisoners by a vote of 13 in favour, seven against and two abstentions.
In an open letter published on his official Facebook site Saturday, Netanyahu said he had agreed “to free 104 Palestinians in stages, after the start of negotiations and according to progress” and that he would seek cabinet endorsement.
His office said in a statement yesterday that the cabinet also approved peace talks with the Palestinians brokered by the United States but without elaborating where or when.
The statement, however, did not announce that a prisoner release had been approved, only mentioning the formation of a committee on the issue.
A Palestinian official told AFP on Saturday that peace talks, stalled since September 2010, would open in Washington on Tuesday.
The chief Palestinian negotiator lauded the Israeli vote on prisoners.
While the names of the prisoners have yet to be officially published, or even revealed to ministers, they reportedly include militants convicted of killing Israeli women and children or of killing Palestinians suspected of collaborating with Israel.
It said the 22-member cabinet approved Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposal to free prisoners by a vote of 13 in favour, seven against and two abstentions.
In an open letter published on his official Facebook site Saturday, Netanyahu said he had agreed “to free 104 Palestinians in stages, after the start of negotiations and according to progress” and that he would seek cabinet endorsement.
His office said in a statement yesterday that the cabinet also approved peace talks with the Palestinians brokered by the United States but without elaborating where or when.
The statement, however, did not announce that a prisoner release had been approved, only mentioning the formation of a committee on the issue.
A Palestinian official told AFP on Saturday that peace talks, stalled since September 2010, would open in Washington on Tuesday.
The chief Palestinian negotiator lauded the Israeli vote on prisoners.
While the names of the prisoners have yet to be officially published, or even revealed to ministers, they reportedly include militants convicted of killing Israeli women and children or of killing Palestinians suspected of collaborating with Israel.
No comments:
Post a Comment