JERUSALEM, April 22: Israel turned down on Sunday an offer by President Pervez Musharraf to serve as a mediator in peace efforts with the Palestinians but said he would be welcome to visit the Jewish state.
“There is a positive ongoing bilateral dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians. This dialogue will continue without the assistance of mediators,” an official in Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s office said. In remarks broadcast on a TV channel on Saturday, Gen Musharraf said he would be able to play a “big role” if he “was accepted as a neutral mediator by all sides”.—Reuters
