WASHINGTON, May 14, 2011 (WAFA) – Veteran United States politician and Middle East peace envoy George Mitchell announced Friday his resignation as special envoy as his efforts to broker peace between Palestinians and Israelis had failed.

US President Barack Obama said in a statement on Mitchell’s resignation that “over the past two and a half years, George Mitchell has worked as a tireless advocate for peace as the U.S. special envoy for the Middle East.”

He said Mitchell was deeply committed to resolving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and his efforts have “contributed immeasurably to the goal of two states living side by side in peace and security.”

Obama said that Mitchell had said when he took the job that he would put in a couple of years. Mitchell, he said, and in spite of his record in the US Senate and in bringing peace to Northern Ireland, “took on the toughest job imaginable and worked grueling hours to advance the interests of the United States and the cause of peace.”

Even though Mitchell had failed in resolving the Middle East conflict, the US, nevertheless, remains “committed to peace in the Middle East and to building on George’s hard work and progress toward achieving this goal,” said Obama.

He said that US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has asked the deputy Middle East envoy, David Hale, to serve as the acting envoy.

Clinton also praised Mitchell’s efforts in a separate statement. She said that Mitchell “understands the slow, hard work of diplomacy, the art of compromise and the indispensable role of American leadership in the world.”

M.A.