Former US President meets Hamas leader

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Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter paid a significant visit to the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip on Tuesday.

He held talks with Hamas leaders to persuade them to renounce violence and accept the existing peace agreements as well as the right of the Jewish state to exist.

During his meeting with Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haneya, Carter stressed the importance of the proposals laid out by U.S. President Barack Obama in his recent speech in Cairo which said there should be two "sovereign nations" living side by side, with the "right to exist and to live in peace."

Haneya said he wants to move forward to establish a Palestinian state.

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, left, sits with Ismail Haniyeh, head of Gaza's Hamas government, during their meeting in Haniyeh's office in Gaza City,Tuesday, June 16, 2009. (AP Photo/Ashraf Amra)