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Olmert and Abbas meet for talks Olmert and Abbas meet for talks
(about 4 hours later)
The Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has met the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Jerusalem.The Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has met the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Jerusalem.
It was the second time they had met in a month, and an Israeli official said they had agreed to have further discussions on a regular basis.It was the second time they had met in a month, and an Israeli official said they had agreed to have further discussions on a regular basis.
The talks were overshadowed by Mr Abbas's power-sharing deal with Hamas, which refuses to recognise Israel.The talks were overshadowed by Mr Abbas's power-sharing deal with Hamas, which refuses to recognise Israel.
A Palestinian government of national unity is expected to be announced in the coming days.A Palestinian government of national unity is expected to be announced in the coming days.
Mr Olmert is believed to have pressed Mr Abbas on far the new government would adhere to standards set by Israel and key international players. Mr Olmert has said he will not conduct peace talks with a government that includes Hamas until it renounces violence, recognises Israel and accepts earlier peace agreements.
The Palestinian president was expected to ask the Israelis to ease restrictions on Palestinians in the occupied territories and to consider extending an unofficial ceasefire to the West Bank. A US-led ban on financial aid has crippled the Palestinian Authority since Hamas won elections in January last year.
Release reports
The deal in February between the president's faction, Fatah, and the Islamist Hamas movement ended weeks of internal fighting.The deal in February between the president's faction, Fatah, and the Islamist Hamas movement ended weeks of internal fighting.
Unity government
The new unity government is expected to be announced this week, despite renewed factional fighting in the Gaza Strip early on Sunday in which a Hamas commander was shot dead.
A US-led ban on financial aid has crippled the Palestinian Authority (PA) since Hamas, which has refused to recognise Israel, won elections in January last year.
Israel and key international players want the PA to meet triple conditions of renouncing violence, recognising Israel and accepting earlier peace agreements.
The BBC's Middle East correspondent Tim Franks says that if there is no movement on these three standards, the Israelis say they will expect Mr Abbas and other Palestinians they see as moderates to distance themselves from the new government.The BBC's Middle East correspondent Tim Franks says that if there is no movement on these three standards, the Israelis say they will expect Mr Abbas and other Palestinians they see as moderates to distance themselves from the new government.
Mr Abbas has been travelling through Europe and the Middle East seeking Western support for a unity government.Mr Abbas has been travelling through Europe and the Middle East seeking Western support for a unity government.
He also wants the financial boycott of the Palestinian Authority to be lifted. Also on Sunday, Palestinian reports said that Israel had released a senior Hamas figure, Saleh al-Arouri, who has been detained for the past 15 years.
The Quartet - Russia, the EU, the US and UN - say they will await the formation of a new Palestinian unity government before making a decision. There has been no confirmation from the Israeli authorities.
The BBC correspondent in Jerusalem says the reported release has increased speculation about a possible deal under which the captured Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, would be freed as part of a swap with Palestinian prisoners.
Earlier, there was renewed factional fighting in the Gaza Strip in which a Hamas commander was shot dead.