Mahmoud

"This is a public place," said Nady Abdulhalim Mahmoud, a zookeeper, while a nearby giraffe munched on leaves.

Mahmoud Abbas was chosen to be the Palestinian leader by George W. Bush and Ariel Sharon, who were looking for a way to subvert Yasser Arafat.

Aït Mahmoud is a village.

There were harsher comments from Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas: "The negotiations are in a state of paralysis, and the result of Israel's intransigence and America's backpedalling is that there is no hope of negotiations on the horizon."