Arab diplomats meeting with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert Gates in Egypt pressed the Bush administration for action to revive the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. President Bush has proposed an international meeting on the Middle East conflict sometime this autumn.

Middle East mediators held talks on Tuesday that could clear the way for the appointment of Tony Blair as their envoy to try to revive peace prospects after Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip.

Russian envoy said Friday that representatives of Quartet of Middle East peacemakers will meet Tuesday in Jerusalem, according to the Interfax news agency.

The United States Wednesday endorsed the idea of a special envoy from the international Middle East Quartet to lay groundwork for Palestinian statehood. Bush administration officials say outgoing British Prime Minister Tony Blair would be ideal for such a post, but stop short of saying he has been asked to assume the role when he leaves office next week.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas are to hold talks in Egypt, early next week. As VOA's Jim Teeple reports from Jerusalem, Jordan's King Abdullah is also scheduled to attend the summit.

China voiced its hope Thursday that internal conflicts in Palestine would cease, calling on different Palestinian factions to exercise restraint and jointly safeguard national interests.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz discussed Syria, and the Iranian nuclear program, in a meeting Wednesday that opened an annual bilateral strategic dialogue. U.S. officials are making clear their misgivings about an early resumption of Israeli-Syrian talks.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has postponed a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert that was scheduled for Thursday in the occupied West Bank. VOA's Jim Teeple has details from our Jerusalem bureau.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas says he plans to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert next week. Mr. Abbas did not say where the two plan to hold talks, set for Thursday, June 7.

The recent eruption of violence in the Gaza Strip and its extension into southern Israel illustrates the volatility of the Middle East conflict, and the longer it continues, the greater the long-term threat to prospects for Israeli-Palestinian peace, the United Nations' political affairs chief told the Security Council today.

The foreign ministers of Jordan, Egypt and Israel have met in Cairo to discuss an Arab initiative for Middle East peace. It is the first meeting between Tel Aviv and the members of the Arab League "working group" tasked with negotiating with Israel. VOA Correspondent Challiss McDonough has more from Cairo.

In a bid to spur action on Middle East peace, a United Nations Committee is slated to open its African Meeting on the Question of Palestine today in Pretoria, with support from the South African Government.