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An aerial photo taken on May 13, 2008 shows the ancient hilltop fortress of Masada in the Judean desert. US President George W. Bush will visit the ancient ruins of Masada during his visit to Israel this week for the second time in four months to mark the country's 60th birthday. Masada was the mountain fortress constructed by King Herod that was occupied by Jewish rebels after the Jewish revolt in the first century. The rebels defended themselves from a Roman army for months. When it appeared
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JERUSALEM (AFP)---US President George W. Bush on Wednesday kicked off his Middle East trip in Israel where he hopes to push ahead with peace efforts while marking the 60th anniversary of the Jewish state.
Renewed turmoil in the region bodes ill for the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks that have produced little tangible progress since they were revived at a conference hosted by Bush in November following a seven-year hiatus.
Bush's Middle East trip takes place against a backdrop of deadly sectarian fighting in Lebanon that Bush has blamed on Syria and Iran, and defiance from Hamas over conditions for a truce in the embattled and besieged Gaza Strip.
The US president will also visit Saudi Arabia to mark 75 years of US relations with the oil-rich kingdom, and hold talks in Egypt with regional leaders, including Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.
Israeli President Shimon Peres, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and a myriad of other political and religious dignitaries gave the US president and First Lady Laura Bush a red carpet welcome to the sound of a military brass band when Air Force One touched down at Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv.
The visit is Bush's second since January -- after seven years in which he did not set foot in either Israel or the Palestinian territories.
His trip is anchored around the 60th anniversary of the creation of Israel.
The highlights of his trip include an address to the Israeli parliament and a visit to the ruins of the Masada fortress that became a symbol of Jewish heroism after dozens of Jews there chose to kill themselves rather than surrender to the Romans in 70 AD.
Both events will take place on Thursday, the day when Palestinians commemorate the exodus of hundreds of thousands of Arabs who lost their homes and their land when Israel was created in May 1948.
Bush, who will not visit the Palestinian territories, told the BBC Arabic service he had a message for the Palestinians: "I say to them that I care deeply about the Palestinian people and their future."
Bush hopes to give new impetus to peace talks before his term ends in January.
The US president hopes a peace deal will shore up his legacy and has expressed confidence this could be done in the eight months left in his term.
"The vision of a (Palestinian) state is such a powerful notion and such an important notion for Israel's very existence, that I do believe that we have a chance to get something defined," Bush told reporters on the eve of the trip.
Olmert said on Tuesday "real progress" had been made in talks with the Palestinians and "understandings and agreements have been reached on very important matters."
Bush was to hold talks on Wednesday with Olmert, who faces mounting calls to resign over allegations he took bribes from a millionaire US financier.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, Defence Minister Ehud Barak and armed forces chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi were to take part in the meeting.
Rice insisted on Tuesday an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal could be reached before Bush leaves office.
"If the parties want to do this and will put the energy and the will into it, I think they can do it," she told CBS, adding she was impressed the commitment of the two sides.
