Condoleezza Rice cancels planned visit to Israel

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice cancelled her visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories, which was planned for next week. President George W. Bush announced that Rice and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates will travel to the Middle East in August. Rice was due to meet with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in Jerusalem and with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah. The secretary of state also plans to meet with Egyptian intelligence head Omar Suleiman.