Israeli and Palestinian officials pledged to “prevent further violence” and work toward “de-escalation,” according to a joint statement released Sunday after a meeting in Jordan.
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“Senior Jordanian, Egyptian, Israeli, Palestinian and American officials” attended the meeting, held in the Red Sea city of Aqaba, and after “thorough and frank discussions” reiterated “the need to engage in de-escalation on the ground and.” Preventing further violence,” the eight-point statement reads.
According to Jordanian state television, the day-long “security policy” meeting aimed to discuss a lull in the occupied Palestinian territories after several days of deadly violence.
This is the first of its kind in years between Palestinians and Israelis, with regional and international participation, to discuss the situation in the Palestinian Territories,” the same source said.
At the end of the talks, the government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority “reaffirmed their readiness and shared commitment” to act immediately to halt the unilateral measures for a period of 3 to 6 months.
This includes an Israeli commitment to stop discussing the establishment of new settlement units for a period of 4 months, not to legalize “wild” settlements for a period of 6 months, the text said.
During the meeting, two Israelis were killed in a Palestinian “attack” in the northern West Bank – Palestinian territory occupied by Israel since 1967 – according to a statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office.
The meeting was attended by Palestinian Intelligence Chief Majed Faraj, Israeli Domestic Intelligence Chief (Shin Beth) Ronen Bar, US National Security Council Middle East Coordinator Brett McGurk, and security officials from Jordan and Egypt.