Middle East peace talks begin
Published:Thursday | September 2, 2010 | 2:17 PM
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have begun direct peace talks in Washington.
The talks, hosted by Hillary Clinton at the US State Department, are the first such negotiations in 20 months.
Yesterday, President Barack Obama held separate White House meetings with the leaders, urging them not to let the chance of permanent peace slip away.
Meanwhile, The Israeli army has warned of a possible wave of attacks by Hamas militants trying to sabotage the Washington talks.
Despite controlling Gaza, Hamas is excluded from the talks because Israel, the US and European Union do not recognise its authority.
As a result Abbas, a rival of Hamas, will be negotiating in the talks over territory that he does not control the Gaza Strip.