Abbas to tour Arab, European countries by year's end

President Mahmoud Abbas intends to carry out a tour that will include a number of Arab and European countries, according to a leading Palestine Liberation Organization official on Wednesday.

Yasser Abed Rabu, the PLO Executive Committee's secretary-general, said Abbas would visit Tunis, Algeria, Morocco, Spain and France.

Rabu added that the president's goals were to "rescue" the peace process from Israeli threats and settlement activity, and shore up support from the international community in favor of a just resolution to Palestinian aspirations for statehood.