Egypt, Jordan plan Israel talks

Arab League members Egypt and Jordan have proposed sending envoys to Israel this week for long-delayed talks on an Arab peace initiative, Israeli officials said yesterday. The visit by the Egyptian and Jordanian foreign ministers would be the first by...

Arab League members Egypt and Jordan have proposed sending envoys to Israel this week for long-delayed talks on an Arab peace initiative, Israeli officials said yesterday.

The visit by the Egyptian and Jordanian foreign ministers would be the first by the Arab League working group, set up in April to hold contacts with Israel over the initiative. Egyptian diplomatic sources said it could happen as early as Thursday.

The land-for-peace initiative offers Israel normal ties with all Arab states in return for a full withdrawal from the lands it seized in the 1967 Middle East war, creation of a Palestinian state and a "just solution" for Palestinian refugees.

Israeli officials said last week they believed the plan was on hold because of Saudi objections to Western efforts to isolate Hamas Islamists who seized control of the Gaza Strip last month.

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