Ramallah – Ma'an – The Palestinian leadership will examine US Middle East Envoy George Mitchell’s suggestions to restart the peace process at an Egyptian-Palestinian summit in Cairo this week, participants confirmed Thursday.

Secretary-General of the Office of the President At-Tayyib Abdul Rahim said Palestinian delegates would begin talks Friday and participate in a series of consultations with delegates from around the Arab world as well as representatives from the office of the Quartet.

"It is the Israeli government that lays obstacles impeding the resumption of peace talks. In order to restart bilateral talks, settlement activities should be frozen completely including those in Jerusalem, and negotiations should start from where they stopped in December 2009," he said during an address inaugurating the general conference of the Palestinian union of journalists in Ramallah on behalf of President Mahmoud Abbas.