His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday warned against escalation between the Palestinians and the Israelis, calling on both sides to exercise extreme self-restraint and resort to reason.

The King told Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas over the telephone that he was concerned about developments on the Gaza Strip border.

Abbas urged the international community to help calm the Palestinian-Israeli situation.

On Sunday, King Abdullah also met with EU and G-8 ambassadors to Jordan and urged their countries to help defuse the Palestinian-Israeli tension.

He warned against the adverse impact of these developments on the security and stability of the region.

The King stressed the need to intensify international efforts to bring the two sides closer together and persuade them to take trust-building measures and resume peace talks.

The world should also shoulder its responsibilities towards the economic situation in the Palestinian territories and ensure aid to the Palestinians, His Majesty added.

King Abdullah, meanwhile, briefed the envoys on Jordan's position on other regional developments, particularly Iraq, for which he urged international support to restore security and stability.

He also reviewed Jordan's reform and modernization plans.

The Jordan Times