In Israel and the Occupied Territories, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met in Jerusalem Tuesday in advance of a proposed peace conference for later this fall. Abbas has come under criticism from rival Palestinian faction Hamas for isolating Hamas and failing to win firm guarantees for an end to the Israeli stronghold over the West Bank and Gaza.

Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zuhri: “Such meetings will never achieve anything as long as the Israeli occupation continues to deny the rights of our people and continues their aggression against our people. And the only party benefiting from these meetings is the Israeli occupation that shines its image in front of the world.”