Afro News 24 » Africa»Politics » ↓

Saudi king and Mubarak discuss Palestinians, Lebanon Eds: Starts new cycle

---

Cairo – The first leg of the Saudi king’s tour of the Middle East began in Sharm el-Sheikh with a meeting with Egyptian President Hosny Mubarak which focused on Lebanon and the Palestinians, state media reported Thursday.

Mubarak, rumoured to be ill at age 82, held the late night talks Wednesday with King Abdullah, himself 85-years-old, at the Sinai resort town, without any obvious outward signs of failing health.

The one-on-one talks were said to have lasted an hour, according to state media. The stagnated Middle East peace process, the status of the Palestinians and the Lebanese, along with bilateral relations between the two key Arab states were the main items on the agenda.

The Saudi king was expected in Damascus later Thursday for talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, set to focus on the tense political situation developing in Beirut.

Riyadh and Damascus have been slowly seeing their ties warm in recent months, and officials have said Syria’s relations with Iran could also be on the table during the discussions.

En route to Damascus, the monarch planned to make a short stop in Jordan for talks with that country’s king, also named Abdullah.

On Friday, the Saudi monarch was expected to reach Beirut, where tensions between the political factions were rising, in some instances highlighting sectarian rifts.

Hezbollah, the powerful Shiite movement, has said it would reject any attempt to indict its members in relation to the 2005 assassination of former premier Rafik al-Hariri.

Head of a rival party and current Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri – son of the slain leader – has been in talks with the other movement, though relations between the two blocs remains fraught.

King Abdullah and the emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, who will also be in Lebanon over the weekend, are said to be keen to cool down the atmosphere in Beirut. dpa sg mat

---