Olmert to release 150 Palestinians, Livni on peace talks
Palestine-Israel, Politics, 8/11/2008

Head of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Negotiations Affairs Department Saeb Erikat said on Wednesday that Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Olmert promised to free 150 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.

Erikat told reporters following President Mahmoud Abbas' meeting with Olmert in Jerusalem that Israel would free 150 prisoners behind bars in Israeli jails as a "good-will gesture to President Abbas."

He also said that the two leaders have made the decision to release Palestinian prisoners during their meeting, noting that the release of the Palestinian prisoners would take place by the end of August.

Erekat added that the two leaders had discussed the ongoing peace negotiations between the two sides as well as the permanent status issues, namely the status of Jerusalem, the expansion of settlements and the refugees.

In a radio interview, Israel's Foreign Minister Livni stated that "Israel will release prisoners not only in exchange for the release of kidnapped soldiers, but also in response to positive processes. It is important for Israel to send a clear message to the entire region that Israel does not interact only with those who attack it and kidnap its soldiers," the Israeli Ministry Of Foreign Affairs noted.

Livni said in this August 5th interview "Evening News" program of the REKA that" Correct. We are conducting negotiations with both feet on the ground. The negotiations must primarily represent Israel's interests. We are not doing the Palestinians a favor. If for the first time the resulting agreement establishes all the security arrangements required for the future, if it determines the principle of two states for two peoples, including the determination of Israel as the national homeland of the Jews and the Palestinian state as the solution to the refugee issue - in short if the agreement conforms with these Israeli principles, then in my view we should sign, even if the actual implementation is postponed. In Annapolis, we stipulated that the implementation would first require a change in the realities on the ground, which is why this has three aspects:

- Determination of the principles of the agreement, even with weak partners.

- Implementation only after the situation on the ground has changed. At the same time, adopting a hard line with Hamas, which represents the religious, ideological and extremist entities in the region."

Livni also said "In the Oslo agreements, it was determined that Jerusalem was one of the issues on the table. We undertook to discuss this issue in the negotiations. But let's put aside the slogans of "If we don't divide Jerusalem, others will." There are places in Jerusalem that, in my opinion, relate not only to the history of the Jewish people, but also to the future of the Jewish people. When I wrote Kadima's political platform, I wrote that the discussion on the borders would fall under the following categories:

- The security of Israel
- The holy places, and Jerusalem above all
- The desire to leave the maximum number of Israelis in their homes. This relates to the settlement blocs."

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