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| Arab leaders open Riyadh summit | |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| Arab leaders have opened a summit in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, which is set to focus on reviving a five-year-old Middle East peace plan. | |
| The leaders are expected to discuss a Saudi initiative first proposed in 2002 at the annual Arab League summit. | The leaders are expected to discuss a Saudi initiative first proposed in 2002 at the annual Arab League summit. |
| Under the plan, Arab nations would recognise Israel if Israel withdrew from land occupied in the 1967 war. | Under the plan, Arab nations would recognise Israel if Israel withdrew from land occupied in the 1967 war. |
| The plan allows for the creation of a Palestinian state and the return of Palestinian refugees. | The plan allows for the creation of a Palestinian state and the return of Palestinian refugees. |
| SAUDI MIDDLE EAST PLAN Also known as Beirut DeclarationAdopted by Arab League in 2002Calls for "full Israeli withdrawal from all the Arab territories occupied since June 1967"Calls for Israel's "acceptance of an independent Palestinian State, with East Jerusalem as its capital"All Arab states would establish "normal relations... with Israel" and "consider the Arab-Israeli conflict ended"Calls for a "just solution to the Palestinian refugee problem" | SAUDI MIDDLE EAST PLAN Also known as Beirut DeclarationAdopted by Arab League in 2002Calls for "full Israeli withdrawal from all the Arab territories occupied since June 1967"Calls for Israel's "acceptance of an independent Palestinian State, with East Jerusalem as its capital"All Arab states would establish "normal relations... with Israel" and "consider the Arab-Israeli conflict ended"Calls for a "just solution to the Palestinian refugee problem" |
| BBC Middle East analyst Roger Hardy says the plan is being revived because it is a starting point on the Palestinian issue that most parties can accept - although with reservations. | |
| It has also seen as a move to counter Iran's growing influence - an issue to be discussed in Riyadh, along with the potentially explosive situation in Lebanon, the war in Iraq and Darfur. | |
| On Tuesday US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice appealed to Arab states to reach out to Israel. | On Tuesday US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice appealed to Arab states to reach out to Israel. |
| She was speaking in Jerusalem after three days of meetings with Israeli, Palestinian and Jordanian leaders aimed at reinvigorating the Middle East peace process. | She was speaking in Jerusalem after three days of meetings with Israeli, Palestinian and Jordanian leaders aimed at reinvigorating the Middle East peace process. |
| She said Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas had agreed to meet every two weeks for talks. | She said Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas had agreed to meet every two weeks for talks. |
| Saudi-Syrian talks | Saudi-Syrian talks |
| Leaders of 21 of the Arab League's 22 member states are attending the two-day summit. Libya is boycotting the meeting. | |
| United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the European Union's foreign policy chief Javier Solana are also attending. | |
| Correspondents say no-one expects any breakthroughs, but the fact that Saudi Arabia, the regional powerhouse, is being so pro-active means this will be one of the most scrutinised Arab league summits. | Correspondents say no-one expects any breakthroughs, but the fact that Saudi Arabia, the regional powerhouse, is being so pro-active means this will be one of the most scrutinised Arab league summits. |
| Israel rejected the 2002 plan outright after it was first proposed at an Arab summit in Beirut, but Mr Olmert is now giving it a guarded welcome, albeit with reservations linked to the issue of refugees. | Israel rejected the 2002 plan outright after it was first proposed at an Arab summit in Beirut, but Mr Olmert is now giving it a guarded welcome, albeit with reservations linked to the issue of refugees. |
| On Monday, Jordan's King Abdullah met Ms Rice to discuss the plan and called on Israel to "react positively" to it. | On Monday, Jordan's King Abdullah met Ms Rice to discuss the plan and called on Israel to "react positively" to it. |
| Ahead of the summit, Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah held closed-door talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the French news agency AFP reported. | Ahead of the summit, Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah held closed-door talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the French news agency AFP reported. |
| This was the first such meeting between the two since their differences over last year's Lebanon war. | This was the first such meeting between the two since their differences over last year's Lebanon war. |