His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas for talks on recent political developments in the Palestinian arena and ways to enhance bilateral ties.



During a meeting at Raghadan Palace in Amman, both leaders reviewed Israeli planned withdrawal from Gaza Strip. King Abdullah said any withdrawal form Gaza should be followed by a similar step in the West Bank and as stipulated in the Roadmap.



King Abdullah noted that there are certain issues that should be left for final status negotiations and that imposing solutions without the participation of all concerned parties will neither serve the peace process nor lead to results accepted by all parties.



Both leaders stressed the importance of protecting Al-Aqsa Mosque and holy sites in Jerusalem from threats by extremist Jewish groups. King Abdullah and President Abbas also reiterated their stand rejecting attempts to sell or lease the Orthodox Church's properties.



King Abdullah and Abbas said that the Israeli settlements are hindering efforts to realize a just and comprehensive peace, underlining the necessity of halting new settlement activities and removing settlements inside the Palestinian territories.



The talks were attended by Prime Minister Adnan Badran, Royal Court Minister Marwan Muasher, Foreign Minister Farouq Qasrawi and several senior Palestinian officials.