Israel has completed its release of groups of Palestinian prisoners to help advance the United States sponsored road map for peace.
Busloads totalling more than 300 prisoners arrived at checkpoints in the West Bank and and the Gaza Strip.
However Palestinian officials dismissed the gesture as insignificant.They say the numbers released fall far short of the 540 promised earlier.
They also claim that few of them are long-term prisoners and that many were only recently arrested.
The Palestinian Prime Minister, Mahmoud Abbas, has registered his disappointment by cancelling talks scheduled for today with his Israeli counterpart, Ariel Sharon.
The Palestinian legislator and former chief negotiator, Saeb Erekat, accused the Israelis of being unwilling to take risks for peace.
