The foreign ministers of Egypt and Jordan have begun a historic visit to Israel to formally present an Arab peace plan, saying they were extending "a hand of peace" on behalf of the region.
The ministers arrived as representatives of the Arab League, the first time the 22-member group has sent a delegation to the Jewish state. The Arab League peace plan envisions full recognition of Israel in return for evacuation of lands captured in the 1967 Middle East war.
"We are extending a hand of peace on behalf of the whole region to you, and we hope that we will be able to create the momentum needed to resume fruitful and productive negotiations" between Israel and the Palestinians and the rest of the Arab world, Jordan's foreign minister, Abdul-Ilah Khatib, said at a news conference with Israeli President Shimon Peres.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said the two delegates had been asked by the league "to come and offer Israel the Arab peace initiative." He urged Israel to consider the plan seriously.
Aboul Gheit and Khatib will also meet with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert before appearing at the Israeli parliament.
The visit, which came a day after former British prime minister Tony Blair made his first trip as new Mideast peace envoy, is part of a flurry of diplomatic efforts meant to restart peace talks after a seven-year lull.
The Arab League asked Jordan and Egypt, countries that both have peace treaties with Israel, to take the lead in pushing forward their newly revived peace plan, which offers a comprehensive peace agreement in exchange for Israel's withdrawal from all territories captured in 1967.
Israel rejected the plan when Saudi Arabia first proposed it in 2002, at the height of the Palestinian uprising. But it softened its resistance after moderate Arab states endorsed the plan again in March, sharing their concerns about Iran's growing influence.
Israel has welcomed the plan as a basis for negotiations, but raised concerns about certain aspects. Israel rejects a full withdrawal from the West Bank and east Jerusalem. It also objects to the plan's apparent call for the return of Palestinians who became refugees in the 1948 Mideast war and their descendants. Israel says a large-scale return of refugees would destroy the country's Jewish character.