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| Rice to meet key Mid-East leaders | Rice to meet key Mid-East leaders |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is due to hold talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders on the second day of her tour of the Middle East. | US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is due to hold talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders on the second day of her tour of the Middle East. |
| Ms Rice's visit is part of US efforts to secure a peace deal in the region by the end of the year. | Ms Rice's visit is part of US efforts to secure a peace deal in the region by the end of the year. |
| Ms Rice has played down the possibility that details of an interim agreement might be published next month. | Ms Rice has played down the possibility that details of an interim agreement might be published next month. |
| Meanwhile, the Israeli foreign minister and chief negotiator Tzipi Livni has warned against rushing the process. | Meanwhile, the Israeli foreign minister and chief negotiator Tzipi Livni has warned against rushing the process. |
| Ms Livni said that to bridge gaps prematurely, as she put it, can lead to misunderstandings and violent clashes. | Ms Livni said that to bridge gaps prematurely, as she put it, can lead to misunderstandings and violent clashes. |
| Ms Rice will hold three-way talks with Ms Livni and the chief Palestinian negotiator, Ahmed Qurei, as well as meeting Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in Jerusalem and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank town of Ramallah. | |
| Amid continued doubt that an agreement will be reached by the year-end target, Ms Rice said ahead of the talks that she was "very heartened" by the fact that the negotiations were "serious" and "intensive". | |
| In a joint press conference with Ms Livni, considered a frontrunner to replace scandal-hit Israeli PM Ehud Olmert, she reiterated the US position that Israeli settlement activity is "not helpful" to the peace process. | |
| A report by the Israeli pressure group Peace Now released on Tuesday said construction in settlements had nearly doubled in the first half of this year, in comparison to the same period in 2007. | |
| Ms Livni said settlement work was limited to "small activities" which would not influence the negotiations or borders of a future Palestinian state. | |
| Relations between Israel and the Palestinians have been strained in recent months and both have internal issues. | Relations between Israel and the Palestinians have been strained in recent months and both have internal issues. |
| The Israeli leadership is in flux: Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said he will step down after new internal party elections. | The Israeli leadership is in flux: Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said he will step down after new internal party elections. |
| And the Palestinians remain divided between those in charge of the West Bank, with whom the Israelis are talking, and the rival Islamist Hamas faction, in control of the Gaza Strip. | And the Palestinians remain divided between those in charge of the West Bank, with whom the Israelis are talking, and the rival Islamist Hamas faction, in control of the Gaza Strip. |
| Ms Rice's visit has coincided with the release of 198 Palestinian prisoners in what Israel called a goodwill gesture to Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas. | Ms Rice's visit has coincided with the release of 198 Palestinian prisoners in what Israel called a goodwill gesture to Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas. |
| Ms Rice welcomed news of the prisoner release as "a very good step". | Ms Rice welcomed news of the prisoner release as "a very good step". |