Palestinian minister to visit Indonesia next week

JAKARTA, May 19 (Reuters) Palestinian Foreign Minister Mahmoud al-Zahar will visit Indonesia next week as part of a tour of Muslim nations in West Asia and Southeast Asia, an Indonesian government official said today.

Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country, is legally secular and its Islamic populace is largely moderate. However, Indonesian Muslims mostly support the Palestinian cause and the government has no formal relations with Israel.

Israel and the United States have sought to isolate the new Hamas-led government. The militant Islamic group swept parliamentary elections in January and took control of the Palestinian Authority late in March.

''The visit will be used to exchange views and brief (Indonesia) on the latest situation on the ground and the difficulties faced by the Palestinian people,'' said foreign affairs spokesman Desra Percaya, adding that the three-day visit would start on Thursday.

The Palestinians have been unable to receive funds from abroad because local, regional and international banks fear sanctions by the United States.

''Indonesian initiatives like how to help activate, push the quartet process in implementing the road map, will be conveyed,'' Percaya said in a news conference, without elaborating further.

The Quartet of the United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations has said the Hamas-led government had failed to commit itself to the Israeli-Palestinian ''roadmap'' peace accord.

The Quartet wants the Palestinian administration to recognise Israel, renounce violence and accept interim peace accords.

Hamas says talks with Israel would be a waste of time and has sworn to destroy the Jewish state.

REUTERS SHB DS1700