article_snippet.sent: Most of those released were women and children; the rest were ill or elderly, said Rassol Omar, a commander in the Peshmerga force that defends  northern Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region.
article_snippet.sent: Omar didn't say what led to the release, other than asserting that Arab tribal leaders helped to coordinate the release.
article_snippet.sent: It wasn't immediately clear what motivated the release, Osman said.
article_snippet.sent: Omar, the Peshmerga commander, had a higher count: 228.
highlights_snippet.sent: Most of those released were women and children .
  