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August 25, 2008

Palestinians Celebrate Israel's Release of Prisoners
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=1DDCF06:A6F02AD83191E1601877F94A1C45CBF25C6F54A6CF9DC2CA&
 
There are 11,000 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, including women
and children, and Palestinian officials say they all should go free 
Palestinians are celebrating Israel's release of nearly 200 prisoners
Monday. Israel says it freed the prisoners as a gesture to bolster the
moderate Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas. The release came just
before the arrival of U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who will
work to push along a peace deal on Palestinian statehood. VOA's Luis
Ramirez reports from Jerusalem. Hundreds of people took to the streets
of Ramallah in the West Bank to cheer the first Palestinians released by
Israel Monday, welcoming them as heroes. Some of the former prisoners
kissed the ground as they arrived on Palestinian territory.       Said
al-Attaba, center, the longest serving Palestinian prisoner (30 years in
jail) waves after being released from Israeli prison, 25 Aug 2008The
prisoners, in some cases, had been held for decades. Israel had been
reluctant to release them because some had been imprisoned for attacks
that had killed Israeli civilians. Israeli officials say releasing the!
  prisoners was not easy, but they did so because they believe the
gesture could help move along negotiations with the Palestinians.
Greeting the released prisoners on Monday was Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas, who welcomed their release but said Israel must free more
of the at least nine-thousand Palestinians still in prison. Mr. Abbas
said Palestinians love peace and want a comprehensive peace accord. But,
he said, no peace will come without the release of all prisoners. The
release came hours before the arrival in Israel of U.S. Secretary of
State Condoleezza Rice for meetings with Israeli and Palestinian
officials. The United States wants to see a peace agreement by the end
of the year. However, Israel has warned that such an agreement is still
out of reach. Israelis and Palestinians remain far apart on key issues
including Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, and
the Palestinians' right of return. Israel last week warned that too much
international pressure could yield a premature agreement and result in a
new outb
reak of violence.


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