Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said on Monday he intended to free 250 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails in a gesture to President Mahmoud Abbas, leader of the Fatah faction.
"As a gesture of goodwill towards the Palestinians, I today announced my intention to release approximately 250 prisoners who are members of Fatah who do not have blood on their hands, with their commitment not to involve themselves again in terror," Olmert told a news conference with Palestinian, Egyptian and Jordanian leaders in Egypt.