Bush Met With Jewish Leaders

Thursday Session Was Unannounced

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"As he prepared for a visit this week from Israel's prime minister, President Bush held an unannounced meeting with the top leadership of the United States' Jewish community to discuss the dramatic events in the Middle East and other foreign policy issues.

Bush meets with smaller groups of Jewish leaders from time to time, but the gathering Thursday was the first time he had met with the entire leadership community, about 50 heads of Jewish advocacy, service and religious organizations of different political orientations.

The White House did not disclose the private session on the president's schedule, and officials asked participants to treat Bush's remarks as off the record. Present for the session were the president's most senior aides, including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, national security adviser Stephen J. Hadley, White House Chief of Staff Joshua B. Bolten and political adviser Karl Rove.

Several people present provided a general outline of the session, which included Bush giving an opening statement for 10 to 15 minutes and answering questions for more than an hour. The conversation touched largely on foreign policy issues, including the situation with Iran and Syria, the fight against Islamic extremists and -- especially -- the situation in the Gaza Strip, where Hamas's seizure of power this past week has further complicated Bush's faltering efforts to help settle the Israeli-Palestinian dispute.

"He has not resigned himself to saying that he gives up," said Malcolm I. Hoenlein, the executive vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, which set up the Bush meeting. "He's wrestling with it."

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