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U.S. Feels Pressure to Show Progress in Peace Talks between Israelis and Palestinians
(Washington Post) Anne Gearan and William Booth - The Obama administration is feeling pressure to show progress in U.S.-sponsored peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians that both sides say have not made much headway. Secretary of State John Kerry will visit Jerusalem and the West Bank next week to prod both sides, which have been meeting for three months. Kerry insisted last month that he wants a full, final deal, not an interim agreement. Netanyahu has honored his promise to release Palestinian prisoners, a precondition urged on him by Kerry to get Abbas to return to negotiations. The first 52 of 104 prisoners have been released on schedule. Freeing prisoners is an unpopular gesture in Israel - all of them were convicted of murdering Israelis.