Israel to release 500 Palestinian prisoners

Israel will release 500 Palestinian prisoners next week, one of a series of goodwill gestures aimed at strengthening the new Palestinian leadership, a Palestinian negotiator said today.

Saeb Erekat, a Cabinet minister, told Israel Army Radio he was informed by Israeli officials that the 500 Palestinian prisoners will be released on Monday.

Israel is planning to release another 400 prisoners within the next three months. A joint Israeli-Palestinian ministerial committee will decide which prisoners will be released in the second round.

The two sides are also thought to be close to reaching an agreement on the handover of the West Bank town of Jericho to Palestinian control, after resolving a last-minute dispute over the size of the pullback and the removal of roadblocks.

Israel has agreed in principle to hand Jericho to Palestinian control, but the two sides have been at odds over the size of the area from which troops would withdraw.

The Palestinians want Israel to hand over Jericho as well as the adjacent Bedouin village of Al Awja, and to remove the main army checkpoint at the entrance to Jericho.

Israeli military officials said they were unaware of an agreement, but that commanders from both sides were holding more talks today.

Jericho will serve as an important model for the upcoming handover of four more West Bank towns.

The Palestinians want to establish the precedent of troops withdrawing from areas, not only cities.

In the past, Israel has withdrawn from Palestinian towns, but ringed them with checkpoints, severely restricting Palestinian travel.