MK Gilad Erdan (Likud) slammed the cabinet’s decision to release 450 terrorist prisoners on Monday.  The government “gave in to American demands to release 450 potential murderers of Jews, and is unable to make one firm demand for the release of one man who worked on behalf of Israel,” he told Omedia.  Erdan has pushed for the release of Jonathon Pollard, who is serving a life sentence in the United States for passing information to Israel.

Erdan added that the release represented “a great moral failure from Olmert and Kadima, I have no expectations from them, but also a disgraceful failure for Shas and Yisrael Beiteinu.”  Both Shas and Yisrael Beiteinu (Israel is Our Home) voted against the release, but neither party threatened to leave the coalition.