Palestinian and Israeli mediators restart security talks

Israeli and Palestinian peace negotiators yesterday held their first face-to-face meeting in more than a year, searching for a formula to restart long-stalled negotiations.

Jordan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Israel's Yitzhak Molcho and Palestinian envoy Saeb Erekat met with envoys from the "Quartet" of Middle East mediators – the United States, Russia, the European Union and the UN. Later, the two men met in the presence of the Jordanian Foreign minister, Nasser Judeh, to exchange positions on key issues of security and borders between Israel and a future Palestinian state. A diplomat who attended the larger meeting said the talks were "serious".