MIDDLE EAST:Saudi Arabia has thrown its weight, wealth and prestige behind urgent efforts to end Palestinian divisions as it stepped up a diplomatic drive yesterday to challenge Iran and its regional allies and play a more muscular role across the Middle East.
King Abdullah's mediation between Ismail Haniyeh, the prime minister and leader of Islamist movement Hamas, and Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, represents a high-profile attempt to defuse the crisis by steering these bitter rivals to forge a desperately needed deal on a national unity government.
The Palestinian leaders came to the Saudi holy city of Mecca after the king rebuked them for internecine fighting which he called "a shameful stain on the history of the honourable national Palestinian struggle to end occupation". The death of 60 people in 10 days "serves only the interests of the enemies of Islam and the Arabs", he said. Given his role as "custodian of the two holy shrines", they could hardly ignore the royal appeal.
The high stakes were underlined by the symbolism of the venue - a palace overlooking the Ka'aba, the black-draped shrine towards which Muslims turn when they pray. "They will not leave this holy place without an agreement because things are catastrophic . . . and the whole world will turn its back on us if we continue that way," said Jamal al-Shobaki, the Palestinian ambassador to Saudi Arabia.
The talks fit a pattern of what analysts and diplomats see as new activism by the normally low-key Saudis, who are more used to quietly wielding chequebooks to buy influence and preserve the status quo than launching public initiatives to achieve their goals.
The oil-rich conservative kingdom has been galvanised by fears about the continuing chaos and violence in Iraq, the increasingly assertive Iranian influence across the region - in Iraq, Lebanon and, most recently, in the Palestinian territories - and anxieties about a widening divide between Sunni and Shia Muslims.
Claire Spencer of the Royal Institute of International Affairs said the Saudis "want to be seen as an honest broker in the region and not leave everything to the Iranians, who are not doing anything positive to resolve current problems".
The last abortive attempt to end Palestinian infighting took place in talks in Damascus last month between Mr Abbas and the Hamas leader in exile, Khaled Meshal. Success in Mecca would be seen as weakening Iranian and Syrian influence. Egypt, Jordan and the Gulf states worry, like the Saudis, that Tehran has become Hamas's biggest financial backer.
The Saudis have their own area with a Shia majority - the oil-producing eastern provinces where 10 per cent to 15 per cent of the population live - and are anxious to avoid unrest there.
"The Saudis say they are afraid of the Shia but it's not true," argues a senior Jordanian. "They know the Americans will defend them and their oil, but they are afraid of the example that Hizbullah has set."
This is the background to recent intensive attempts to broker a deal in Lebanon, which included an unprecedented meeting with Hizbullah and exploratory contacts with the Iranians. King Abdullah has also met Ali Larijani, the Islamic Republic's chief nuclear negotiator.
Yesterday Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert announced that a trilateral meeting of himself, Mr Abbas and US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice would be held on February 19th in a renewed bid to revive stalled peace talks. - (Guardian service)