By Xinhua,
Jerusalem : Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have begun their meeting in the prime minister’s residence in Jerusalem. The two are meeting privately, without the negotiation teams.
The meeting is being held ahead of Abbas’ upcoming visit to Washington, where he is scheduled to meet with U.S. President George W. Bush and other U.S. officials who are interested in giving a boost to Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
Last week, the two leaders met for the first time since February 19 as Abbas suspended the talks in protest to an Israeli military operation in Gaza during which 130 Palestinians were killed.