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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Israel to free Palestinian prisoners over Kerry talks | Israel to free Palestinian prisoners over Kerry talks |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Israel says it will release a number of Palestinian prisoners as part of an agreement made with US Secretary of State John Kerry to resume peace talks. | Israel says it will release a number of Palestinian prisoners as part of an agreement made with US Secretary of State John Kerry to resume peace talks. |
| Yuval Steinitz, minister responsible for international relations, said it would involve "heavyweight prisoners in jail for decades". | Yuval Steinitz, minister responsible for international relations, said it would involve "heavyweight prisoners in jail for decades". |
| Mr Kerry announced on Friday that initial talks would be held in Washington "in the next week or so". | Mr Kerry announced on Friday that initial talks would be held in Washington "in the next week or so". |
| The Israeli minister's remarks are the first details of the deal. | The Israeli minister's remarks are the first details of the deal. |
| Mr Kerry had declined to tell reporters in Amman what the two sides had agreed to, saying that the "best way to give these negotiations a chance is to keep them private". | Mr Kerry had declined to tell reporters in Amman what the two sides had agreed to, saying that the "best way to give these negotiations a chance is to keep them private". |
| The agreement came at the end of four days of frenetic shuttle diplomacy, on Mr Kerry's sixth visit to the region in the past few months. | |
| Mr Steinitz told Israeli public radio that the agreement adhered to the principles set out by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for kick-starting the talks. | Mr Steinitz told Israeli public radio that the agreement adhered to the principles set out by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for kick-starting the talks. |
| The release of prisoners would take place in stages, he said. | The release of prisoners would take place in stages, he said. |
| According to Israeli human rights group B'Tselem, 4,817 Palestinians are held in Israeli jails. The release of prisoners held before the 1993 Oslo peace accords has been a long-held Palestinian demand. | According to Israeli human rights group B'Tselem, 4,817 Palestinians are held in Israeli jails. The release of prisoners held before the 1993 Oslo peace accords has been a long-held Palestinian demand. |
| For their part, the Palestinians had committed themselves to "serious negotiations" for a minimum of nine months, said Mr Steinitz, who is a member of the prime minister's Likud Beiteinu party. | |
| But he made clear that Israel had not accepted Palestinian pre-conditions, including a halt to settlement construction in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. | |
| "There is no chance that we will agree to enter any negotiations that begin with defining territorial borders or concessions by Israel, nor a construction freeze." | "There is no chance that we will agree to enter any negotiations that begin with defining territorial borders or concessions by Israel, nor a construction freeze." |
| Israel and the Palestinians last held direct talks in 2010, which were halted over the issue of settlement-building. | |
| Settlements are considered illegal under international law, although Israel disputes this. |