AMMAN – US Secretary of State John Kerry met Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas Sunday and discussed tensions between Israelis and Palestinians in the West Bank and Jerusalem, the US State Department said.
Kerry was in Jordan where he also met King Abdullah II, a key US ally in the fight against the Islamic State group, in the southern port of Aqaba.
A palace statement said the king stressed “the need for the international community and the United States first, to end the stalemate in the peace process between Palestinians and Israelis and to move towards a two-state solution”.
American diplomats said Kerry and Abdullah also discussed the Syrian conflict.
Kirby said Kerry had stressed to Abbas Washington’s commitment to seeking a sustainable two-state solution “and to working with all parties to that end”.
US-brokered peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians collapsed in April 2014 and the prospects of fresh dialogue have appeared increasingly remote.
On Thursday, the Palestinians welcomed an initiative put forward by France for an international Middle East peace conference

Extracted from an AFP report, FEBRUARY 22, 2016