Israel Releases 198 Prisoners

Just before the arrival of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Israel released 198 palestinian prisoners. The move to release 198 prisoners to Fatah is meant to strengthen the group.

As the prisoners were receiving a hero's welcome in the West Bank, Mohmoud Abbas thanked Israel by saying "There will be no peace without the release of all Palestinians imprisoned in Israel".Reuters

RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - Israel freed 198 Palestinian prisoners to a hero's welcome in the West Bank on Monday, saying it hoped the release would bolster Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and U.S.-sponsored peace efforts.

The longest-serving Palestinian prisoner in Israeli custody, Said al-Atabeh, 57, of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), was among those released.

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"It's not easy to release prisoners, especially prisoners that were involved directly in terrorist acts against innocent civilians," said Mark Regev, a spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

Wearing shirts emblazoned with pictures of Abbas and the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, some of the released prisoners flashed V-for-Victory signs as they leaned out of windows of buses that took them from Ofer prison to the city of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.

Cheering crowds waved Palestinian flags and danced in the street to welcome the 194 men and four women, who were received at a ceremony at the Palestinian Authority compound in Ramallah.

"There is no doubt that we seek peace and we are trying to seek our goals -- and there won't be peace without the release of all prisoners," Abbas said at the celebration.