A two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians is now needed more urgently than ever, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has said.

Rice also urged Arab states to accept a peaceful and permanent home for Israel.

Israel has said there can be no deal for a Palestinian state unless its own security is guaranteed.

Rice is in the region to prepare the ground for a planned peace conference in the US later this month.

But she said on Sunday that she was not yet ready to set a date for the conference.