Fayad: Israel should take 'bold steps' to forge Palestinians' trust
By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayad said in an interview Saturday that it's time for bold Israeli steps ahead of the US-hosted Mideast conference, including releasing 2,000 of the more than 12,000 Palestinians held in Israeli jails.
Fayad told The Associated Press that Israel must do more to try to create trust among Palestinians.
"I think we need to really begin to see some bold moves in the direction of dealing with those issues of the here and now, for the people to buy into the process," he said. "We need to rekindle signs of hope after years of deterioration."
Fayad said Palestinian negotiators have asked Israel to release 2,000 Palestinian prisoners ahead of the conference, to be held in coming weeks in Annapolis, Maryland. "We feel this is one area where a lot more can be done than has been done so far," he said.