Earlier in on Monday, 87 prisoners had been processed and were boarding the buses that would take them to the West Bank and Gaza strip, when something delayed the departure. There was no explanation for the delay. The prisoners were taken off the buses and returned to cells.
The prisoners are being released as a goodwill gesture to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas before he meets Wednesday with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to discuss an upcoming Mideast peace conference.
The meeting will be the sixth for the two leaders in recent months.
Israeli officials say Mr. Olmert will host Mr. Abbas at the prime minister's Jerusalem home.
They are set to discuss a joint statement to be issued at a U.S.-sponsored conference, scheduled for November.
At their last meeting on September 10, the men established negotiating teams to work on the statement's wording.
But Mr. Abbas repeated a call Sunday for the conference to have a clear agenda that tackles the status of Jerusalem, Palestinian refugees and final borders. Mr. Olmert has said he wants a more general declaration of principles.
President Bush has said he hopes the conference will start a full resumption of peace talks leading to the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel. - VOA News
