On the heels of Israel's incursion into Gaza to destroy launching sites for Kassam rockets, US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice paid a visit to several Middle East capitols trying to jump start the peace process. But Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was having none of it:Palestinian leaders on Tuesday rebuffed Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's efforts to kick-start peace talks as Israel warned that more violence may be just over the horizon. Rice returned to the Middle East on a 32-hour diplomatic damage-control mission to keep alive the Bush administration's hopes of brokering a peace deal by year's end. Peace talks skidded to a halt on the eve of Rice's arrival after an exceptionally bloody Israeli military campaign in the Gaza Strip that left more than 110 people dead. Standing alongside Rice after talks Tuesday, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas politely ignored her public prodding to resume negotiations with Israel. During stops in Cairo, Egypt, and Ramallah,...(Read Full Post)