By DPA
Jerusalem : Israel's cabinet voted Sunday to release 250 Palestinian prisoners as a gesture to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Israel Radio reported.
The actual list of names will be brought to the cabinet for approval at a later date.
The cabinet vote follows a pledge by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert at a four-way Israeli Palestinian-Egyptian-Jordanian summit two weeks ago, in which he said he would free the prisoners in order to strengthen Abbas, who is locked in political battle with the Hamas movement.
Israel has said it would try to boost Abbas' standing after the president dismissed a Hamas-led government following the movement's violent takeover of the Gaza Strip last month.
Olmert indicated that Israel would cooperate with the emergency government Abbas set up to replace the one headed by Hamas.