[AP/Forbes] Mark Lavie - Prime Minister Olmert on Sunday said a planned summit with Mahmoud Abbas has been put on hold because of Abbas' insistence that Israel release large numbers of Palestinian prisoners. "We offered to meet with Abu Mazen (Abbas), but apparently he is not interested," Olmert was quoted as telling a meeting of Kadima party lawmakers. "He is conditioning a meeting on the release of prisoners and we will not release any prisoners until (captured soldier) Gilad Shalit is released." Shalit was captured in June by Hamas-linked militants in a cross-border raid.
2006-10-16 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive