The Minister for Foreign Affairs will discuss the developing Middle East crisis with a senior Palestinian official today. Mr Cowen is to meet the Minister of Planning and International Co-operation in the Palestinian Authority, Dr Nabil Shaath, in Dublin this afternoon.
In a statement yesterday, Mr Cowen said the Government welcomed the report of the fact-finding committee led by the former US senator, Mr George Mitchell. He said the recommendations were similar to the draft resolution tabled by Ireland and three other European countries at the UN Security Council in March.
"The Government are convinced that such measures offer the only possible path out of the current violence and towards a peaceful solution of this tragic conflict which continues to cost so many lives," Mr Cowen said. In the meantime both sides should "act urgently" to halt further acts of violence.