Israel frees 26 Palestinian prisoners
Israel has set free 26 long-serving Palestinian prisoners as part of the US-brokered peace efforts to resume peace talks between Israel and Palestine.
The release of the prisoners, who have served sentences of between 19 and 28 years, comes despite protests from relatives of the victims. Israel and Palestine resumed peace talks in July, under heavy pressure from the United States.
As a precondition, the Palestinians were forced to drop a demand for a halt in Israeli settlement construction in the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem. In exchange, Israel agreed to release 104 of the longest-serving Palestinian prisoners it holds. This week’s release will be the third of four planned phases.
