Carter arrives in Damascus for talks with Hamas

Damascus: Former US president Jimmy Carter arrived in Syria where he plans to meet exiled Hamas leader Khaled Mesha'al on Friday.

Carter's visit comes a day after he met a Hamas delegation in Egypt to ask them to stop rocket attacks into Israel.

Carter also is scheduled to meet with Syrian President Bashar Assad before holding talks with Mesha'al. He also plans to meet with Syrian businessmen.

The United States has objected to Carter's meeting with Hamas, but the former US leader defended his move, saying Hamas should be included in the peace process.