Cairo - Although he rejects the idea that good corporate governance would have decreased the effect of the global financial crisis, Martin Steindl, of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), believes that better corporate governance would have saved some companies from being part of the crisis.

"Such a crisis affects everyone, but when it comes to getting up again, better corporate governance will play a role," says Steindl, who is Programme Manager in Corporate Governance Advisory Services for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, at the IFC. The IFC is part of the World Bank group.

New York - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Tuesday ahead of meetings at UN headquarters on religion and peace that the opportunity it would provide for Arab and Israeli leaders to meet was "quite unique."

Saudi King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa and Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, Israeli President Shimon Peres and Foreign Minister Tipzi Livni were to find themselves in one room if not at the same table for dinner Tuesday with Ban.

Jerusalem - Israeli caretaker prime minister Ehud Olmert said Monday that Israel must cede parts of Jerusalem as part of a peace deal with the Palestinians.

Gaza - Hamas will not implement a long-term truce with Israel for the time being, a senior official of the Islamist organization said Sunday.

The offer "was not cancelled," Mahmoud al-Zahar said, but added that there was "no room to implement it for the time being" since "there is no one to talk about this proposal with on the other (Israeli) side."

He said a long-term truce was "a project that can be developed when there are intentions."

Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt - Wrapping up a briefing to the sponsors of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said Sunday they will keep negotiating, even as the peace process goes through a lull due to the political changes in the US and Israel.

"We, both of us, affirmed that we will continue in these negotiations and that we will not stop even as Israel [prepares to go for] elections," Abbas told a joint news conference with Livni.

"Our meetings will continue as usual," he added.