Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
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June 6, 2007

Olmert, Abbas Meeting Postponed
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=17BB6E5:A6F02AD83191E16079D727E8537413529574F7DCC14957C0 Israeli prime
minister and Palestinian president were scheduled to meet Thursday;
Palestinians requested postponement





Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas, right, with Israeli Prime Minister
Ehud Olmert in Jerusalem (Mar 2007 file photo)

A meeting scheduled for Thursday between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud
Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has been postponed.

Mr. Olmert's office said the Palestinians requested the postponement.

No new date for the talks was announced. But Palestinian foreign
minister Ziad Abu Amr said the two are expected to meet June 25 with
the Middle East Quartet of peace mediators (the United States, the
European Union, the United Nations and Russia).

Meanwhile, Mr. Olmert wrote in an opinion column in Britain's Guardian
newspaper that Israel is ready to discuss an Arab land-for-peace deal,
as long as it is not presented as an ultimatum.

In a column in the same newspaper, Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail
Haniyeh wrote that Israel must recognize the basic rights of
Palestinians if it is serious about peace.

In other developments, Mr. Olmert told his security cabinet that
Israel does not want war with Syria. He spoke about the issue as the
Israeli army staged war games that included a simulated attack on a
Syrian village.

Meanwhile, Israeli forces killed two Palestinians in separate
incidents in the Gaza Strip and occupied the West Bank early
Wednesday. Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP
and Reuters.


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