His Majesty King Abdullah and UN Secretary General Kofi Annan on Thursday called for lifting the Israeli blockade on Lebanon.

King Abdullah told Annan, during a meeting on the shores of the Dead Sea, that the Israeli blockade was “condemned and unacceptable."

During the meeting, King Abdullah called for a more “active” UN role in resolving regional problems, stressing that the Palestinian cause was the core of the Middle East conflict.

“The key to all the problems pertaining to the Arab-Israeli conflict is finding a just solution to the Palestinian issue that would restore the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people and lead to establishing a Palestinian state on Palestinian soil,” the King said.

King Abdullah said priority was to have the ceasefire take hold to allow for the deployment of international forces.

Annan later told a joint press conference with Foreign Minister Abdul Ilah Khatib that Israel should swiftly lift the blockade and fully withdraw from Lebanon as soon as 5,000 UN peacekeepers are in the south.

Annan, meanwhile, described Israel's blockade of Lebanon as "unsustainable", saying: "It is important that it is lifted and not be seen as collective punishment of the Lebanese people.”

The Jordan Times