French President Nicolas Sarkozy was meeting Monday with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the prime minister of Qatar in an attempt to forge a lasting halt to violence after Israel's recent offensive in the Gaza Strip, Associated Press reported. President Barack Obama's new Mideast envoy, George Mitchell, was meeting with Sarkozy's chief of staff and French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner. Sarkozy took an active role in helping broker a Gaza cease-fire and French diplomats have been spearheading efforts for a longer-term peace deal. On the other hand, Qatar's Prime Minister, Sheik Hamad bin Jassem al-Thani, has called for Arab reconciliation. Mitchell met last week with Palestinian officials including Abbas, who is on a European tour that will take him to the EU parliament in Strasbourg on Wednesday and go on to Britain, Italy, Turkey and Poland. Abbas is to meet on Tuesday with Bernard Accoyer, president of the National Assembly, the lower house of the French parliament, Accoyer's office said.
