AMMAN, May 8: Jordan confirmed on Tuesday that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will meet King Abdullah II next week at a gathering of Nobel laureates but said he had been invited by the event's organisers.

“A large number of Arab and international figures have been invited by the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity to attend the (May 15-16) gathering,” in Jordan's ancient city of Petra, a palace official said.

Olmert's office announced the visit earlier saying the Israeli prime minister “accepted the Jordanian government's invitation” to attend the Petra gathering.“During the meeting the prime minister is expected to meet Jordan's King Abdullah,” on May 15, Olmert's office said.

The Jordanian official said that Olmert's invitation to the two-day event was jointly issued by the Wiesel foundation and the King Abdullah II Fund for Development, rather than the Jordanian government.

Around 40 Nobel laureates and other prominent figures, including former UN secretary general Kofi Annan and veteran Israeli politician Shimon Peres, both Nobel peace laureates, will attend the event, the official said.

King Abdullah II and Wiesel will jointly open the gathering “and the king will meet all the participants,” the official added.

The Petra conference, the third in as many years, will seek ways of addressing the challenges faced by young people in the Middle East.

Olmert last travelled to Jordan in December, when he paid a surprise visit for talks with King Abdullah II on ways to kickstart peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.

Next week, the two leaders are expected to discuss an Arab League initiative for comprehensive Middle East peace.—AFP