(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Most people in Israel reject the possibility of releasing a former Fatah leader from prison, according to the Peace Index Project by the Tami Steinmetz Center for Peace Research and the Evens Program in Mediation and Conflict Resolution of Tel Aviv University. 71 per cent of respondents oppose freeing Marwan Barghouti.

Barghouti is a former leader of Fatah, who was convicted in an Israeli court and sentenced to five life terms in prison for his alleged involvement in deadly attacks by the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades. Many Palestinians believe the charges against Barghouti were made up, and he is considered a political prisoner.

On Jun. 14, amid a wave of violent clashes between Palestinian supporters of the Hamas and Fatah factions, Hamas militants seized control of Gaza. Palestinian Authority president and Fatah member Mahmoud Abbas issued a decree to form a 12-member emergency government—based in the West Bank—and expelled Hamas from the administration. The Israeli government believes Hamas is directly responsible for the deaths of 377 citizens in a variety of attacks, which include dozens of suicide bombings.

On Jun. 25, Olmert ratified his support for a Hamas-free Palestinian government and announced that 250 Palestinian prisoners belonging to Fatah "who do not have blood on their hands" would be set free as a gesture of goodwill to Abbas. On Jul. 20, Israel released 256 Palestinian prisoners. Israeli diplomat Roey Gilad discussed the situation, saying, "We try to strike a balance between keeping our security. (...) Indeed a risk is involved, but this risk is worth a try. And we hope at the end of the day it will be more successful in the peace process."

Last month, Labour party legislator Ephraim Sneh met with Barghouti in his prison cell and later declared he would be in favour of releasing the former Fatah leader in exchange for Gilad Shalit, an Israeli solider held in captivity by Hamas since June 2006. Sneh said that Barghouti's "contribution to improving the situation on the ground by far exceeds the judicial arguments for keeping him in prison."

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