A four-way summit on Mideast peace began in Sharm El-Sheikh on Tuesday to discuss ways to reactivate the deadlocked peace process.

The summit, which brought together Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Jordanian King Abdullah II, marked the first highest-level face-to-face encounter between the Palestinians and Israel in more than four years.

It was also the first time that Sharon set foot on the Egyptian soil since he took office in 2001.

At the end of the summit, the Palestinian side and Israel will make separate statements on the cessation of violence, an Israeli official said.

A mutual ceasefire is deemed as essential to the resumption of Palestinian-Israeli peace talks.

Source: Xinhua