Itongadol.- US secretary of state meets with Abbas and then holds trilateral meeting with Netanyahu and Abdullah; says calm must be restored before the Israelis and Palestinian can reengage in talks.
US Secretary of State John Kerry said Thursday that he gained assurances from Israel, the Palestinians and Jordan to deescalate tensions over the Temple Mount which have led to violence in recent weeks.
Kerry met in Amman Thursday with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and later held a trilateral meeting with Jordanian King Abdullah and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The US Secretary of of State said he and Abbas had "a very productive meeting" in which they discussed "real steps, not rhetoric that people can take in order to deescalate the situation and create a climate in which we can move forward constructively." He said that Abbas stated his firm commitment to nonviolence and said the PA president vowed to do all possible to restore calm and curb incitement.
Kerry said that it was "imperative to uphold the staus quo at Temple Mount and take affirmative steps to prevent provocation."
In his trilateral meeting with Netanyahu and Abdullah, Kerry said the leaders "discussed specific actions both sides can take to restore calm."
He said that the Jordanians and Israelis agreed to deescalate the situation, and discussed the steps they will take to instill confidence that the staus quo will be upheld at the Temple Mount. "There are firm commitments from Jordan and Israel to take these steps."