|
|
Israel to free 250 prisoners before weekend: Palestinian official |
 |
+ |
- |
17:55, July 09, 2007 |
A senior official in Palestinian emergency government led by Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said on Monday that Israel would free 250 Palestinian prisoners from its jails before the weekend.
"We are waiting to receive from the Israeli side as soon as possible the list of names of the prisoners that are expected to be released," said Ashraf al-Ajrami, minister of prisoners' affairs.
The Israeli cabinet on Sunday passed a bill to free 250 Palestinian Fatah movement affiliated prisoners from its jails. Israel still holds 11,500 Palestinian prisoners, including 450 women and children.
Fawzi Barhoom, a spokesman for Hamas, told reporters that his movement "supports the release of any prisoners who have the right to return to their homes and families."
But he slammed the deal to free only Fatah affiliated members, saying that selecting the prisoners according to factional criteria was "an unjust decision."
"The release of the prisoners should not be subject to factional factors because their issue can't be limited to a specific party," Barhoom underlined.
Daoud Shehab, spokesman for the Islamic Jihad (Holy War), also denounced Israel's selecting prisoners according to factional criteria.
"The leadership of the Palestinian National Authority has violated the Palestinian national consensus when it accepted to limit the release to Fatah prisoners," said Shehab.
Source: Xinhua
|
|
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article