U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Tuesday urged Arabs and Israelis to set aside their historical differences, avoid inflammatory rhetoric and recommit to attaining a comprehensive peace in the Middle East.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton prepared Monday to consult with Arab foreign ministers on Obama administration efforts to get Israel and the Palestinians to resume peace negotiations, two days after she raised Arab ire by praising Israel’s offer to limit — but not stop — Jewish settlement construction.

JERUSALEM—The Palestinians yesterday accused U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton of undermining progress toward Mideast peace talks after she praised Israel for offering to curb some Jewish settlement construction. After meeting Israeli and Palestinian leaders during a visit Saturday, Clinton called for an unconditional resumption of peace talks and welcomed Israel’s offer for a slowdown in settlement activity.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says Israel is making “unprecedented” concessions on West Bank settlement construction.

U.S. hopes of reviving Mideast peace talks appeared shaky Saturday after a senior Palestinian official said the Palestinians are unlikely to resume negotiations if Israel does not halt Jewish settlement building.

Jordan’s king said in comments published Monday that the U.S. administration seems to be focusing more of its attention on Iran and less on resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, saying time was running out to make peace.

JERUSALEM—Rather than getting Israelis and Palestinians back to negotiations, President Barack Obama’s high-stakes attempt to relaunch Mideast peace talks runs the risk of cementing Israeli intransigence and exacerbating Palestinian weakness. A day after Obama hosted the Israeli and Palestinian leaders in New York, moderate Palestinians said they felt undermined by Obama’s failure to back up his demand for a freeze.

Pressing for elusive Mideast peace, President Barack Obama on Tuesday challenged Israeli and Palestinians leaders to do more, saying it was time to “find a way forward.“ It was the president’s most direct engagement yet on a problem that has vexed leaders for years.

A friend notes with wry amusement the following passage from a recent news story: “The Palestinian Authority and Hamas rejected over the weekend Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s demand that the Palestinians recognize Israel as the state of the Jewish people as a precondition for resuming the stalled peace talks between the two sides . . . .

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said the militant used the ax and a knife in the attack in Bat Ayin, a settlement south of Jerusalem. “No shots were fired,“ he said.

Local Jewish, Christian and Muslim leaders signed this statement declaring their commitment to Mideast peace.

Over the weekend Israel announced a unilateral cease-fire. Hamas initially maintained it would continue its attacks, then switched gears and said it would suspend them for a few days. Few observers hold out much hope that the cease-fire will last long, and for good reason: As Hamas leader Khaled Meshal said not long ago, a cease-fire is merely “a tactic in conducting the struggle [against Israel]. Hamas is known for that.“ Hamas might have switched tactics, but it has not changed its ultimate goal one iota. It still lusts for Israel’s annihilation.

Mideast mediators meet today in a bid to preserve U.S.-backed Israeli-Palestinian peace talks despite their looming failure to produce a deal by year’s end. With no agreement in sight after nearly 12 months of negotiations, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will press the two sides and fellow mediators to reaffirm their commitment to the peace process even after the end-of-the-Bush-administration deadline for a pact passes.

A prominent defender of Israel made a case for the embattled Middle Eastern nation last night in Richmond. Alan Dershowitz, Harvard University professor, writer and passionate advocate for Israel, spoke to an audience of about 240 at a Jewish Community Federation of Richmond event at the Virginia Historical Society. After a dinner, Dershowitz answered questions and discussed his most recent book, “The Case Against Israel’s Enemies: Exposing Jimmy Carter and Others Who Stand in the Way of Peace.“