Dennis Ross to arrive in Middle East on Monday

Dennis Ross, US envoy to the Middle East peace process, is due to arrive in the Middle East on Monday to stop the deterioration in Arab - Israeli relations which has escalated after the continuous Israeli shelling of south Lebanon.

The USA informed Israel, the Palestinian government and Egypt of Ross' return on Monday at a time when the Palestinian government has announced a stop to its negotiations.

Palestinian Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Nabeel Shaath said he will not return to the negotiations whether the transitional or the final status until Israel shows, through a U.S. mediation, its intention to reduce the severity of disputes after the stumbled negotiations .