DHAKA: French president Francois Hollande was meeting the Palestinian leadership on Monday to discuss the faltering Middle East peace process after a day of talks in Israel focused heavily on Iran.

After being warmly received in Jerusalem following France’s strong stance in world talks with Iran over its contested nuclear programme, Hollande headed to the West Bank’s political capital Ramallah for a morning of talks with president Mahmud Abbas.

On arrival at the Muqataa presidential compound, a brief 15-minute drive from Jerusalem, the French leader paid his respects at the tomb of Yasser Arafat, who died nine years ago under mysterious circumstances which Swiss experts now say was probably due to poisoning.

Hollande then met Abbas for talks in which he was expected to present a budgetary support package worth 10 million euros, a training programme for Palestinian staff and confirm the opening of a French high school in Ramallah, reports The Straits Times.

BDST: 1623 HRS, NOV 18, 2013
RoR/SRS