Saudis Say Israel Must Withdraw First

Israeli soldiers watch Palestinian protesters during a demonstration against Israeli military checkpoints at the Beit Furik checkpoint near the West Bank city of Nablus, Monday, April 2, 2007. (AP Photo/Nasser Ishtayeh) (Nasser Ishtayeh - AP)

Olmert welcomed the summit's renewal of the offer but said Israel did not accept all parts of the plan. Israel wants to retain some settlements in the West Bank, objects to a Palestinian capital in east Jerusalem and fears an influx of refugees into its territory.

Asked about Olmert's suggestion for a regional conference, the U.S.-backed Lebanese prime minister, Fuad Saniora, said Israel must accept the Arab peace offer unequivocally.

"I think it's about time for the Israelis to realize that eventually it is important to establish real peace in the region and accept the Arab peace initiative in its entirety," he told reporters in Beirut.

Hani Khallaf, assistant foreign minister for Arab affairs for Egypt, one of two Arab nations that have peace treaties with Israel, was quoted as saying Monday that Arab nations cannot negotiate on behalf of the Palestinians. The government of Jordan, the other state with a treaty, did not make any immediate comment.

Syria, which demands the return of the Golan Heights as a condition for peace, also had no comment. On Sunday, Olmert asked U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to take a message to Syrian President Bashar Assad saying Israel would be interested in making peace if Syria stopped supporting terrorist groups.

Almost every Israeli prime minister has called for peace talks with moderate Arab leaders over the years, but the only multinational forum was the 1991 Madrid conference, which was followed by secret Israeli-Palestinian contacts and a series of interim peace accords.

___

Abdullah Shihri reported from Riyadh, and Donna Abu-Nasr from Beirut, Lebanon.