NEW GROUP OF 26 PRISONERS TO BE RELEASED MONDAY MIDNIGHT

Ramallah, 27 Shafar 1435/30 December 2013 (MINA) – The third group of 26 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails since the signing of the Oslo accords in 1993 are expected to be released by midnight Monday.

The Israeli occupation ministerial committee in charge of deciding on the names of the prisoners to be released published its list late Saturday, giving the Israeli public 48 hours to file any complaints or petitions with the Israeli High Court disputing the release of any or all of the prisoners, WAFA, Palestinian News & Information Agency quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

Palestinian prisoners’ support groups said the list included three people who were not among the original list of 104 prisoners held since Oslo that was agreed on between the Palestinians and Israel in July when the negotiations resumed.

The three are Naim Shawamreh, from Dora in the Hebron area, arrested since March 14, 1995 and was reported as seriously ill, Ibrahim Fayez Abu Ali, from Gaza, arrested on October 8, 1994 and Rami Breikh, also from Gaza and arrested since October 7, 1994.

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The list included three prisoners from Gaza as well as five from East Jerusalem, one of them, Yassin Abu Khdeir, arrested on December 27, 1987 and sentenced to 28 years in prison, which means he had only one year left in his sentence, and Ahmad Khalaf, arrested on November 25, 1992 and slated for release on February 22, which means he had only two months left in his sentence.

The longest serving among the prisoners to be released on Monday is Ahmad Farid Shehadeh, from Qalandia refugee camp, who has been in prison since February 16, 1985.

Two other prisoners have been in prison since 1987, two since 1989, three since 1991, five since 1992, eight since 1993, four since 1994 and one since 1995.

The list also includes 20 prisoners serving at least one life term in prison.

Following is the list of prisoners to be released on Monday.

Ahmad Farid Shehadeh, Qalandia, Jerusalem, sentenced to life

Yassin Abu Khdeir, Jerusalem, sentenced to 28 years.

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Bilal Abu Hussein, Jerusalem, sentenced to 38 years.

Ibrahim Taqtouq, Nablus, life.

Bilal Ibrahim Damra, Salfit, life.

Mukhlis Sidqi Sawafta, Jenin, life.

Faisal Mustafa Abu Rub, Jenin, life.

Mahmoud Ata Muammal, Bethlehem, life.

Numan Yousef Shalabi, Jenin, life.

Adnan Muhammad Afandi, Bethlehem, 30 years.

Jamal Khaled Abu Muhsin, Toubas, life.

Ibrahim Khalil Salah, Bethlehem, life.

Ahmad Juma Khalaf, Jerusalem, 21 years.

Usama Silawi, Jenin, life.

Mahmoud Dajneh, Jerusalem area, life.

Muhammad Afaneh, Ramallah, 40 years.

Ramadan Abu Yacoub, Ramallah, life.

Ayman Jaradat, Jenin, life.

Ahmad Kmeil, Jenin, life.

Said Tamimi, Ramallah, life.

Nasser Burhum, Tulkarm, life.

Mahmoud Salman, Gaza, life.

Jamal Abu Jamal, Jerusalem area, 22 years.

Ibrahim Abu Ali, Gaza, life.

Naim Shawamreh, Hebron, life.

Rami Breikh, Gaza, life.

Israel’s new settlements will coincide with the release of Palestinian prisoners

Ahead of the announcement, Israeli military radio said that Israel planned to announce the construction of 1,400 new settlement homes in the occupied West Bank to coincide with the release.

Israel occupation authority is preparing to announce a plan to build 1,400 settlement units by the time the third batch of Palestinian prisoners are released. Their release is part of US plan to push ahead with peace talks, an Israeli newspaper said.

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According to Middle East Monitor (MEMO), Israeli newspaper Maariv said that the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked departments in the different Israeli ministries to start preparing the plan so they would be ready when it is announced next week when the prisoners will be freed.

According to the newspaper half of the settlement units will be built in occupied East Jerusalem.

Meanwhile the Israeli occupation financial minister, the main partner in Netanyahu’s government Ya’er Labid, said: “It is not right to announce new settlements at the same time as the release of prisoners.”

The release of two dozen Palestinian prisoners on Dec. 29 is the third part of that four-stage deal, and Israeli occupation has already released 52 prisoners in two previous rounds.

The last batch are expected to be released in March 2014.(T/P02/E1)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)