Israel's ex-PM Olmert released from prison
Prison Service spokesman Assaf Librati said Olmert, 71, was whisked away by Israel's security service after his release and driven home after serving 16 months.
A gifted orator, Olmert broke a series of taboos while in office — warning that Israel could become like apartheid South Africa if it continued its occupation of the Palestinians and expressing readiness to relinquish parts of Jerusalem under a peace deal.
Olmert has said he made unprecedented concessions to the Palestinians — including a near-total withdrawal from the West Bank and an offer to place Jerusalem's Old City under international control — and was close to reaching an agreement at the time of his resignation.