Meeting with President Bush, Jordan’s king pressed for greater U.S. engagement in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.
King Abdullah also met with U.S. Jewish and Muslim leaders to press the cause.
“Israeli policies of siege and military force will deepen the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians and threaten to waste years of negotiations to achieve peace in the region,” a statement from the Jordanian Embassy said after the king met Tuesday with Bush.
On Monday, Abdullah met separately with leaders of Arab, Muslim and Jewish organizations. He urged them to support the peace process and “called on Jewish American organizations to encourage Israel to commit to peace as the only way to ensure security and stability in the region” as well as to ease “the difficult living conditions facing the Palestinians,” an embassy statement said.
Representatives of Americans for Peace Now, the Israeli Policy Forum, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the Anti-Defamation League, B’nai B’rith International, the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations and other Jewish groups were present at the meeting.
Jordan is Israel’s closest regional ally, and its leadership enjoys warm relations with Jewish communities overseas.
