ISLAMABAD, Feb 10: President Gen Pervez Musharraf has congratulated King Abdullah for successfully mediating reconciliation between rival factions of Fatah and Hamas to form a unity government.

The president, who telephoned the Saudi king on Friday night, told the Saudi monarch that the accord signed by the rival Palestinian factions on Thursday demonstrated

the respect and esteem in which King Abdullah was held in the Muslim world, a Foreign Office statement said on Saturday.

“The president expressed the hope that Makkah Accord would serve as a first vital step to improve the security and humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territories and for the resolution of the Palestinian issue,” the statement said.

The president, who has been in regular contact with the Saudi King over the Middle East situation, also briefed him about his recent trip to Iran and Turkey and his discussions with the leadership of the two countries.

There have been back and forth consultations between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia at top political as well as diplomatic level since the launch of President Musharraf’s Middle East peace initiative last month.

A joint Pakistan-Saudi Arabia initiative for the Middle East is expected to be announced soon.

On Friday, Foreign Office spokesperson Tasnim Aslam also issued a statement saying: “Pakistan has welcomed the agreement between Al-Fatah and Hamas for the national unity government in Makkah-al-Mukarrammah with the help of the good offices of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.”