Israel has begun releasing 26 Palestinian prisoners ahead of renewed Middle East negotiations.

The Israeli prison service said buses carrying the inmates, most of whom were held for attacks on Israeli citizens, left a prison in the centre of the country late on Tuesday.

Israelis and Palestinians are to relaunch talks in Jerusalem on Wednesday, following a preparatory round two weeks ago in Washington.

The prisoner release is part of an agreement to restart the talks after a five-year freeze.

The 26 inmates are the first of a total of 104 that Israel has promised to free within a year as part of a deal secured after months of shuttle diplomacy by US Secretary of State John Kerry, who has visited the region six times since March.

But Palestinian prisoners rights groups say that, upon close inspection, the deal is not the concession the Israelis are touting it to be.

Most of the detainees slated to be released on Tuesday have already served 20 years behind bars.

Al Jazeera