Washington, July 06, 2010, SPA -- U.S. President Barack Obama said today that he hoped face-to-face peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians would begin before a partial moratorium on Jewish settlement expansion expires in September, according to Reuters. Obama, speaking to reporters during an Oval Office meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, also said Israel faced a unique range of security threats. The two were meeting to mend fences after relations between the close allies went through an unusually cool phase. --SPA 21:00 LOCAL TIME 18:00 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/799638