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Freed Palestinian prisoners being greeted upon arrival at the Presidential Compound in Ramallah on Friday. Israel released 255 prisoners as a gesture to PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas. (AP)
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PA Chairman: We will continue to seek the release of all prisoners
By Jonathan Lis and Amira Hass, Haaretz Correspondents, Haaretz Service and Agencies

RAMALLAH - Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas said Friday that the PA would continue to seek the release of all Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, during a festive ceremony in Ramallah welcoming the 255 Palestinian prisoners released by Israel several hours earlier.

"Our work must continue until every prisoner returns to the his home," he said at a welcoming ceremony for the prisoners in Ramallah.

"You cannot imagine how happy we are that you came back to us," Abbas told a crowd of about 3,000 at the presidential compound. "But our happiness is missing something because we want all 11,000 prisoners to return to their families."

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Israel released the prisoners Friday morning as a goodwill gesture meant to bolster Abbas in his power struggle with Hamas.

For Palestinians, the prisoners are heroes in the struggle for statehood, and large-scale prisoner releases are seen as an effective way for Abbas to win popularity and support. However, Israel refuses to free inmates serving time for wounding or killing Israelis. None of the prisoners being freed Friday were directly involved in attacks on Israelis, according to Israeli officials.

Israel Prison Service buses brought the freed prisoners to Beitunia checkpoint near Ramallah, where they were loaded onto Palestinian buses and brought to the West Bank city.

Some of the freed prisoners kissed the ground when they got off the Israeli buses, and they were handed Fatah hats and Palestinian flags when they arrived at Beitunia, Israel Radio reported.

All the prisoners were released by around 8 A.M., mostly from Ketziot prison in the Negev, according to the report.

"I'm very happy, it's a great day for me," said 18-year-old Shadi Barawshi, released two years into a five-year sentence. His tearful mother said: "I can't believe he's standing in front of me now."

Muhannad Jaradat, who spent 18 years in jail, hugged his mother and said: "I will not leave you, mother."

Israel was scheduled to free 256 prisoners, but the release of one of them was delayed at the request of security officials. According to the radio, his release was canceled due to the fact that he switched to Hamas while in prison.

Most of those freed are from Abbas' Fatah movement.

Prominent among the freed prisoners is 61-year-old Abdel Rahim Malouh, second in command in the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, which assassinated Israeli minister Rehavam Ze'evi in 2001. Malouh at first refused to sign a form saying he would refrain from any terror activity in the future, without which he could not be released, but changed his mind when Abbas intervened personally, a PFLP lawmaker said.

All the prisoners signed the forms, were examined by a doctor, and met International Red Cross representatives.

Palestinian Prisoner Affairs Minister Ashraf al-Ajrami said that, while the majority of inmates belonged to Fatah, a handful of the 255 freed were Hamas members. In addition, Kedura Fares, who heads Fatah institution in charge of prisoners' welfare, said he identified at least one Hamas and five Islamic Jihad members on the list. A Hamas spokesman in Gaza denied the report, however.

Palestinian officials welcomed Friday's release, and said they hoped more inmates would be freed soon.

"This release breaks the ice between us and the Israelis on the issue of prisoners," said Ziad Abu Ein, the Palestinian deputy minister of prisoner affairs.

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told the cabinet this week that the decision to free the prisoners was made only after checking with security officials.

"This gesture is appropriate - thus are we changing the reality in the Middle East," Army Radio quoted Olmert as telling the cabinet. "We want to use all means of encouragement and go in the direction of real dialogue regarding arrangements between us and the Palestinians."

Israeli prisons holding Palestinian inmates have been put on high alert in view of fears that the prisoners who are not about to be released and others identified with Hamas might turn violent in protest against the prisoners' release.

Israel holds about 9,200 Palestinian prisoners, most of whom were arrested during the past seven years of Israeli-Palestinian fighting. Almost every Palestinian family has had a member in Israeli jails at some point, and the fate of the prisoners is one of the most emotionally charged issues of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Friday's release took place after the High Court of Justice rejected a petition by the Almagor Terror Victims Association against the move, Army Radio reported.

"The prisoner release is a foolhardy move that gambles with the lives of Israeli citizens," Almagor said in its petition.

The justices ruled Thursday that the release of Palestinian prisoners was a political issue to be decided by the relevant government authorities, not by the court. Justice Elyakim Rubinstein dissented, saying the release should be delayed so the matter could be examined in depth.
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  1.   Wake Up Israeli`s 06:03  |  Smolmert 20/07/07
  2.   256 prisoners....or? 06:05  |  ravi 20/07/07
  3.   These are Israeli games 06:28  |  Ramzi, a Palestinian 20/07/07
  4.   Is anyone actually in favor of this? 06:32  |  Gili 20/07/07
  5.   Time for Olmert to Go 07:09  |  Ron 20/07/07
  6.   Some, I hope, will honor their pardons 07:09  |  Mark Lincoln 20/07/07
  7.   RELEASE ONLY IN ORDER TO BE EXECUTED IN BATTLE WITH IDF)))))))))) 07:20  |  VOICE of MOSHIACH))) 20/07/07
  8.   256 Pal hostages from about 10000 will boost Abbas? 07:30  |  Luke 20/07/07
  9.   Ramzi, I hope you`re right 07:38  |  Conroy 20/07/07
  10.   signed a form undertaking to refrain from any terror activity 07:52  |  vik 20/07/07
  11.   What a horrible mistake 08:12  |  BradL 20/07/07
  12.   Proof of the connection. 08:17  |  Johnny Weintraub 20/07/07
  13.   Ramzi one word of gratitude on your part may increase Peace chanc 08:27  |  Genuine Tosefta 20/07/07
  14.   STUPID STUPID STUPID 08:38  |  Zev 20/07/07
  15.   unfinished headline 08:40  |  ecr 20/07/07
  16.   #4 hey, gili 08:45  |  jake 20/07/07
  17.   256 murderers to be released 08:53  |  An American Girl 20/07/07
  18.   Good Step for Wrong Reason 08:53  |  isratinian 20/07/07
  19.   To #1 Good Question 08:54  |  isratinian 20/07/07
  20.   Peace 08:55  |  Jack 20/07/07
  21.   Decide what do you want 08:56  |  Hastaroth 20/07/07
  22.   EDUCATION EXPERIMENT BY ISRAEL 09:11  |  indrajaya 20/07/07
  23.   256 murderers? # 6 09:28  |  Clickfool 20/07/07
  24.   Too little, too grudging, too lacking in real goodwill 09:32  |  Clickfool 20/07/07
  25.   Get use to it 09:54  |  Benny 20/07/07
  26.   Take a look.. 10:23  |  Benny 20/07/07
  27.   Thank God for that form they signed! 10:31  |  Marcell 20/07/07
  28.   Clickfool #24 11:02  |  Hannah 20/07/07
  29.   The revolving doors on Isareli prisons 11:27  |  Tzfonit 20/07/07
  30.   This is a good start 11:31  |  Tamir Palestine 20/07/07
  31.   Meaningless 11:40  |  Fahmi Natour 20/07/07
  32.   #28 11:42  |  JJ 20/07/07
  33.   More terrorists to run free 11:43  |  KUTW 20/07/07
  34.   Legitimising terrorism 11:45  |  KUTW 20/07/07
  35.   I now hope a gesture of good will from the pals 11:47  |  KUTW 20/07/07
  36.   Are Israeli lives worth nothing? (end) 11:49  |  KUTW 20/07/07
  37.   28Hannah 11:52  |  KUTW 20/07/07
  38.   You`ll see and feel them again 11:52  |  Chaim Gorenstein 20/07/07
  39.   Our government is not worthy 11:56  |  Roby 20/07/07
  40.   zionist terrorist gangs 11:57  |  historically speakn 20/07/07
  41.   23 Clickfool 11:58  |  KUTW 20/07/07
  42.   Harsh Prison Terms 12:00  |  Bernie 20/07/07
  43.   An American Girl - Murderers? 12:05  |  Bernie 20/07/07
  44.   freed pals 12:06  |  dejavu 20/07/07
  45.   Tzfonit, You are Right 12:09  |  Bernie 20/07/07
  46.   business 12:14  |  aviv 20/07/07
  47.   A welcome start to the peace process 12:18  |  Ivar 20/07/07
  48.   many will complain (or have already done so) 12:21  |  ziggurat 20/07/07
  49.   44. dejavu : freed pals 12:26  |  KUTW 20/07/07
  50.   Prisinors and etc. 12:27  |  Maerton 20/07/07
  51.   Why do some posters exhibit fear... 12:31  |  Maureen Ann 20/07/07
  52.   big deal... 12:38  |  ravi 20/07/07
  53.   Richard Reid to be set free by US 12:47  |  Dov 20/07/07
  54.   Broke the ice ? They forgot to release Olmert 12:51  |  Sal 20/07/07
  55.   All or nothing, heaven or hell 13:36  |  Swiss (Dino) 20/07/07
  56.   Cosmetic Urgency 13:37  |  Ronnie Wolman 20/07/07
  57.   #2 ravi ng 14:00  |  * BEN JABO 20/07/07
  58.   Clickfool-children have been sent on suicide bombing missions 14:03  |  British academic 20/07/07
  59.   #51 Maureen Ann 14:03  |  * BEN JABO 20/07/07
  60.   #43 Bernie Detroit 14:05  |  * BEN JABO 20/07/07
  61.   Now Only 9000 left To Release 14:07  |  But Who`s Counting 20/07/07
  62.   What a gesture!! 14:16  |  Fatih 20/07/07
  63.   Release of Prison 14:19  |  Kathy 20/07/07
  64.   Children! 14:40  |  Dav 20/07/07
  65.   to Gili nr 4 14:44  |  mimi 20/07/07
  66.   Freeing prisoners 14:47  |  Brod 20/07/07
  67.   Terrorist Prisoners released 14:52  |  Julius Klayman 20/07/07
  68.   Tzfonit #29 15:00  |  GABE1 20/07/07
  69.   palestinian prisoners 15:03  |  gal 20/07/07
  70.   When the Occupation Ends... 15:07  |  Yaakov Sullivan 20/07/07
  71.   A song of Lucifer 15:15  |  Ivar 20/07/07
  72.   250 Released & replanished by 300 fresh prisoners 15:38  |  Philistine 20/07/07
  73.   Cluck Fool: any idea what 15:40  |  Star of David 20/07/07
  74.   Maureen Ann 15:43  |  Star of David 20/07/07
  75.   Time 15:44  |  Hadyn 20/07/07
  76.   Yaakov Sullivan #63 15:49  |  Brod 20/07/07
  77.   Yaakov Sullivan 15:51  |  Star of David 20/07/07
  78.   Better free Barghouti NOW 15:57  |  Tosefta 20/07/07
  79.   Ravi from Chandigarh #2 15:58  |  Star of David 20/07/07