Biden, Abbas hold first conversation

RAMALLAH/ WASHINGTON — President Mahmoud Abbas spoke Saturday with Joe Biden for the first time since the US president took office, the Ramallah presidency said, as violence between Palestinians and Israeli occupation forces flared.اضافة اعلان

Abbas's spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina told AFP the conversation was "important", without elaborating on the details of the exchange.

Biden, in his first call with Abbas, "stressed the need for Hamas to cease firing rockets into Israel," a statement said.

Biden also "underscored his strong commitment to a negotiated two-state solution as the best path to reach a just and lasting resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."