Al-Mehdi said in a statement that Peres approached him on the sidelines of the anti-terrorism summit in Madrid last week to shake hands, but insisted the two did not exchange words.

The Israeli press reported Friday that Peres had met several Arab officials in the Spanish capital, including a Sudanese official it did not name but described as a "spiritual leader."

The statement said al-Mehdi rejected normalization with Israel before a comprehensive solution to the Palestinian issue, with international endorsement, is reached.

Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail denied earlier in the day the participation of any government officials at the Madrid meeting, saying that al-Mehdi was the only participant from the African-Arab country.

Al-Mehdi heads the opposition al-Ummah Party and al-Ansar religious sect.