A Palestinian held without charges by Israel for the past year is ending a 55-day hunger strike and in exchange will be released in two weeks, his wife and an advocacy group for prisoners said.

A 14-year-old Palestinian girl, tried before an Israeli military court for hurling rocks at passing cars in the West Bank and sentenced to two months in prison, was released yesterday. Two weeks had been cut from her sentence.

Israel released 61 Palestinian detainees today in what it called a “confidence-building measure” as US Secretary of State Colin Powell encouraged leaders on both sides to move forward on a new blueprint for Mideast peace.