EU leaders meet to progress road map for peace as Arafat fades

EU plans to reinvigorate the Middle East peace process were overshadowed by the news that the Palestinian president Yassar Arafat was seriously ill in a Paris hospital last night.

The 25 EU leaders meeting in Brussels last night and today will discuss a four-pronged initiative in an effort to further the road map designed to create a two state solution with a viable Palestine existing side by side with Israel.

They have been keeping in close contact with members of the Palestinian Authority (PA), with whom they have good relations, not least because the EU is almost single handedly funding the upkeep of the Palestinians.