In a goodwill gesture aimed at bolstering the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Israel Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said he will release 250 Fatah members from Israeli prisons.
"As a gesture of goodwill towards the Palestinians, will bring before the cabinet a proposal to free 250 Fatah prisoners who do not have blood on their hands," Olmert told reporters at the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh following a regional summit meeting.
The prisoners will only be released after they sign a commitment not to return to violence, he added.
The summit, organised at a call from Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, was attended by Jordan's King Abdullah II and PA President Mahmoud Abbas, whose Fatah party took a battering in a violent takeover of the Gaza Strip by the rival Islamist movement Hamas 10 days ago.
Calling Abbas a partner in peace talks Olmert said his newly formed emergency government will have a different attitude towards Israel, as compared to the Hamas-led government.
"A government that recognises Israel's right to exist and (the need for) a two-state solution, a government without members of a terror organisation, is a government that we recognise," Olmert said.
"We will cooperate with the PA government in implementing the Road Map and promoting our mutual goals."
Emphasising to work together the Israeli premier said, "I met Abbas and told him that we will be working together on a regular basis." He will also be meeting the Palestinian leader once every two weeks to help promote a political horizon.
Israel will work on improving freedom of movement, defreeze tax funds, renew trade and bring about economic comfort, he said.
Israel will also continue to send supplies to the Gaza Strip at Abbas' request.
"I have responded to Abbas' request that Gaza be supplied with electricity, water, health services and food. One cannot punish this entire population only because it is under the rule of a terror organisation," he added.
Olmert also pledged to strive towards the creation of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel.
"We will do whatever it takes to establish a Palestinian state alongside the state of Israel," he said.
"We do not want ascendancy over you. We do not seek to run your lives. We have no intention to make decisions for you.
"I believe that the day is nigh when you will be able to live in peace in a state of your own alongside the state of Israel," Olmert said.
Elaborating the need for the meeting, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said, "This summit is a continuation of a summit held here two years ago. Some of the decisions taken then were implemented, while some weren't. There is a possibility that peace could be attained if brave steps are taken."
Mubarak also said there was an immediate need to stop the suffering of the Palestinian people in the "occupied" territories.
He is scheduled to meet Saudi King Abdullah in Sharm e-Sheikh on Tuesday seeking to unify an Arab front behind Abbas.
Egypt is concerned that Hamas' ascendancy in Gaza could embolden its own Islamic groups that pose a serious challenge to his regime.
King Abdullah is also afraid that Fatah-Hamas conflict could spread to the West Bank and spill over to his country where about half of the population is Palestinian.
