A Palestinian woman holds a photograph of a prisoner on hunger strike during a rally in the West Bank city of Hebron to show solidarity with prisoners on hunger strike in Israeli jails, in February. Image by Haaretz

Over the past two weeks, since the Israeli government’s decision to release 104 pre-Oslo Palestinian prisoners involved in murdering Israelis, the Palestinian Authority has been conducting a political and PR campaign focused on this issue. Palestinian ambassadors around the world were asked to relay letters to foreign ministries in the countries where they are serving, which emphasize that contrary to Israeli’s claim, the prisoners are not terrorists.

The special Israeli ministerial committee on the release of Palestinian prisoners is convening Sunday evening at 09:00 P.M. Because of Prime Ministers Benjamin Netanyahu’s leave for medical reasons, the discussion will be headed by Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon. Justice Minister Tzipi Livni and Science Minister Jacob Perry will also attend the meeting; Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch will not attend, as he is currently out of the country.

The meeting is expected to conclude toward midnight; only then will the names of the Palestinian prisoners be made public. The 26 prisoners are to be released on Tuesday night, ahead of the meeting between the Israeli and Palestinian negotiating teams in Jerusalem on Wednesday.

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