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Israel to free militants palestinians Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/breaking_news/6332822.htmhttp://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/breaking_news/6332822.htm
Posted on Fri, Jul. 18, 2003
Israel May Free Jailed Islamic Militants
JASON KEYSER
Associated Press
JERUSALEM - Israel may release a few dozen Islamic militants along with several hundred other Palestinian prisoners, a move that could give a critical boost to lagging peace efforts, an Israeli newspaper reported Friday.
Palestinian officials said Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas would stress the importance of prisoner releases when he meets Sunday with Israeli premier Ariel Sharon.
The release of prisoners is not directly called for in the internationally backed "road map" for Mideast peace. But it has become the first big sticking point for the plan, which aims to end nearly three years of fighting, settle the generations-old conflict and create a Palestinian state by 2005.
The Palestinians want Israel to release thousands of prisoners, but Israel has so far agreed to free only a few hundred, and previously has said it will not consider Hamas or Islamic Jihad militants for release.
A change in that position could ease militants' demands and bolster street support for Abbas, who has been criticized by his own people for not being tough enough in renewed talks with the Israelis.
Israel is holding more than 7,700 Palestinians in custody, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross. Of those, nearly 1,000 are held without charges or trial, on the grounds they pose a security risk.
Among a list of 400 prisoners Israel is considering releasing are as many as 60 from Hamas and Islamic Jihad, which have dispatched scores of suicide bombers and gunmen to attack Israelis, the Haaretz newspaper reported.
An adviser to Sharon said the government seemed to be moving in that direction, but he stopped short of confirming the report.
"What you see in the press may give an indication of the direction things are taking, but there's nothing definite," said the adviser, Zalman Shoval. He added that a decision on the prisoner release would likely be made before Sharon visits Washington on July 29.
If Israel does decide to release members of the two main Islamic militant groups, Shoval said, they would not include those who've been convicted of involvement in terrorist attacks.
Hamas - which declared a temporary cease-fire last month along with Islamic Jihad and Yasser Arafat's Fatah faction - wants all prisoners freed. The militants have warned their truce will collapse unless Israel complies.
Hamas official Ismail Abu Shanab said priority for release should go to those serving out longer prison sentences, not to those held in detention, and he said he hoped all prisoners would be released before the three-month cease-fire expires.
"I'm afraid that the Israelis will lose the chance which is now in hand," Abu Shanab said.
A newspaper poll published Friday showed half of Israelis approved of freeing Palestinian prisoners who hadn't been directly involved in attacks. But only 40 percent said they supported releasing members of Hamas and Islamic Jihad.
The New Wave survey in the Maariv newspaper questioned 600 adults this week and had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
Meanwhile, in the West Bank town of Ramallah on Friday, Israeli soldiers used explosives to blow up two homes belonging to the families of two Palestinians arrested this week for allegedly kidnapping an Israeli taxi driver, who was rescued Wednesday.
Israel's army routinely destroys homes belonging to the families of suicide bombers and others involved in attacks, a policy intended to deter other would-be attackers.
Violence has markedly decreased since militant groups declared their cease-fire on June 29 and Israeli troops pulled back from parts of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank town of Bethlehem.
Sporadic attacks, mainly by rogue militants refusing to join the cease-fire, have continued. On Friday, several gunshots hit a car driven by an Israeli in the northern West Bank, an army spokesman said. The driver was not injured.
In talks with President Bush set for July 25 in Washington, Palestinian premier Abbas will push for Israel to dismantle more Jewish settlement outposts built in Palestinian areas without Israeli government authorization. The Palestinians also want further Israeli troop withdrawals.
The Israelis want the Palestinians to disarm militants, something Abbas has said he prefers to do through negotiations rather than confrontation.
Palestinian Information Minister Nabil Amr said Friday that Abbas and Sharon would meet Sunday, with Abbas stressing the need for more prisoner releases and for lifting of travel restrictions on Arafat. Israeli officials could not immediately be reached for comment.
Sharon is to travel to Washington on June 29, shortly after Abbas' visit. Amr said the two men would not meet in Washington or hold joint talks with President Bush.
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