Egyptian intelligence chief Omer Suleiman will arrive in Israel on Thursday in an attempt to break an impasse in Palestinian-Israeli negotiations, news reports say.
Suleiman is to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak to discuss ways of resuming negotiations, Egyptian reports said.
Suleiman is expected to explain to Israeli officials that the impasse will result in violence that will harm both Palestinians and Israelis. News of Suleiman's visit was first reported Monday by Israeli media.
The PLO and Israel resumed direct negotiations in September, but the talks were called off after less than a month when Israel refused to commit to halting the expansion of illegal West Bank settlements.
Suleiman visited Ramallah last week along with Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit. The two discussed with Palestinian leaders the renewal of dialogue between rival factions Hamas and Fatah.
Palestinian sources told Ynet, an Israeli news site, that Egypt supports in principle the PA's stance that the continuation of settlements will render negotiations nearly impossible.
On Monday, chief PLO negotiator Saeb Erekat told Ma'an that Egypt was working on an initiative to ask the UN to recognize a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza, in light of the impasse.
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