Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Sunday the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) is supporting Egypt's mediation efforts to reach a ceasefire deal with Israel.
Abbas made the remarks following talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak earlier in the day at the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, the Egyptian official MENA news agency reported.
In particular, Abbas expressed his appreciation to the efforts made by Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman to help reach an agreement on a ceasefire with Israel and ease the suffering of the Palestinians.
During the meeting, Abbas briefed Mubarak on the outcome of his recent visits to the United States and Russia as well as the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli peace talks.
Abbas said he had urged Washington to play a greater role in reaching a political settlement to the Palestinian issue.
According to the Palestinian leader, he is expected to meet U.S. President George Bush again during a meeting of the World Economic Forum at Sharm el-Sheikh on May 17.
Israel and the PNA launched peace talks at a U.S.-hosted conference last November, hoping to reach a deal before Bush's term ends in January next year.
However, Palestinian Hamas movement denounced on Saturday that Abbas ended talks with Bush on Friday without tangible progress in pushing peace talks with Israel, calling on Abbas to announce the failure of the Middle East peace process and to start a national dialogue instead.
Meanwhile, more Palestinian groups besides Hamas are expected to arrive in Egypt next week to discuss the issue of a ceasefire with Israel.
Source:Xinhua
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