Gaza - Premier Ehud Olmert has been forced to withdraw his promise to release 250 Palestinian prisoners as a goodwill gesture to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Palestinian sources said on Saturday.

According to the sources, the Palestinian Authority (PA) received a message from the caretaker Israeli government saying that "huge pressure was put on Olmert and forced him to review his promise" made to Abbas in Jerusalem last month.

Olmert faced pressure to halt the release of the prisoners until the release of Israeli Corporal Gilad Shalit, who is presently in the hands of the Islamic Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip

Ramallah - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Tuesday that Israel during its talks with him over the past year had proposed concessions to him regarding Jerusalem, but he rejected them because they were partial.

Abbas told tens of thousands of Palestinians who gathered at his Ramallah headquarters to mark four years since the death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat that he wants a full peace deal and will not accept a partial one.

"We rejected Israeli proposals that indicated making concessions including on Jerusalem and the refugees," he said.

Ramallah  - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called Friday on US president-elect Barack Obama not to waste any time in getting involved in the Israel-Palestinian peace process, after the US admitted that a peace deal by the end of the year is unlikely.

Addressing a joint news conference in Ramallah with visiting Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Abbas said Palestinians wanted to continue their efforts to reach a final settlement with Israel.

Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert pledged at last year's Annapolis peace summit to try and reach a peace agreement by the end of 2008.

Ramallah/Gaza City - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas congratulated US president-elect Barack Obama Wednesday, and urged him to get involved in the Middle East peace process "immediately."

"President Abbas looks forward to working with the new US administration to speed up the work and push the peace process forward," his spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh told the official Palestinian Wafa news agency from Budapest, where Abbas is visiting.

Abbas urged Obama to do it "immediately so as to bring security and stability to the Middle East region," he said.

New Delhi, Oct 9: Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas today said that India''s growing ties with Israel is not a matter of concern for Palestinians as they remain assured of New Delhi's support for their struggle for independence.

While talking to media persons about India’s growing engagement with Israel, particularly in the field of defence, Abbas said, "India''s relations with Israel is its sovereign decision."

Colombo - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, on a goodwill mission to the subcontinent, arrived in Colombo Thursday for a short visit aimed at boosting political and technical ties with Sri Lanka, officials said.

Abbas was welcomed by his Sri Lankan counterpart Mahinda Rajapaksa on arrival at the Bandaranaike International airport Thursday afternoon.

He is scheduled to hold talks with the president, Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayaka and opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe before he leaves the country on Friday evening.