Palestinian foreign minister Mahmoud al-Zahar will attend the Arab-Chinese Forum of Cooperation due to be held in Beijing on May 31 and June 1, sources in the Palestinian ministry of foreign affairs said on Wednesday.

The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that al- Zahar would visit China at the invitation of his Chinese counterpart Li Zhaoxing.

He is the first senior Hamas official to visit China since the Hamas-led government took office in late March.

The second ministerial meeting of the Arab-Chinese Forum of Cooperation will get together foreign ministers or their representatives from 22 Arab countries as well as Arab League secretary general Amr Moussa.

The first ministerial meeting of the forum was held in Cairo in 2004.

Source: Xinhua