Israel to free Palestinian prisoners over Kerry talks
More than 4,000 Palestinians are thought to be held in Israeli jails
Israel says it will release a number of Palestinian prisoners as part of an agreement made with US Secretary of State John Kerry to resume peace talks.
Yuval Steinitz, minister responsible for international relations, said it would involve "heavyweight prisoners in jail for decades".
Mr Kerry announced on Friday that initial talks would be held in Washington "in the next week or so".
The Israeli minister's remarks are the first details of the deal.
Mr Kerry had declined to tell reporters in Amman what the two sides had agreed to, saying that the "best way to give these negotiations a chance is to keep them private".
Mr Steinitz told Israeli public radio that the agreement adhered to the principles set out by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for kick-starting the talks.
The release of prisoners would take place in stages, he said.
According to Israeli human rights group B'Tselem, 4,817 Palestinians are held in Israeli jails. The release of prisoners held before the 1993 Oslo peace accords has been a long-held Palestinian demand.
For their part, the Palestinians had committed themselves to "serious negotiations" for a minimum of nine months, Mr Steinitz said.
"There is no chance that we will agree to enter any negotiations that begin with defining territorial borders or concessions by Israel, nor a construction freeze."
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