Mahmoud Abbas among international officials in Riyadh for Gaza talks

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and other international officials will be in the Saudi capital this weekend for Gaza ceasefire talks on the sidelines of a World Economic Forum meeting, the WEF's president said on Saturday.

"We do have the key players now in Riyadh and hopefully the discussions can lead into a process towards reconciliation and peace," Borge Brende said at a press conference in Riyadh.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Qatar's prime minister, Saudi Arabia's foreign minister, Egypt's foreign minister, Oman's crown prince and Bahraini officials will be amongst those in attendance.

Egypt's foreign minister, Brende said, will update officials on talks held by Egyptian negotiators in Israel on Friday.

"There is now a bit of momentum for negotiations on the hostages and also a possible ceasefire," Brende said.