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Kushner meets Netanyahu and Abbas on first solo trip to the region

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The US President’s chief Middle East advisor landed in Israel yesterday for a 15-hour visit to meet Israel’s Prime Minister and his Palestinian counterpart in the West Bank.

Jared Kushner first met Benjamin Netanyahu for two-and-a-half hours, where both “reaffirmed their commitment” to advancing Washington’s goal of brokering an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal. Special US envoy Jason Greenblatt and the US Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, also took part in the discussion.

Netanyahu told reporters that the meeting “is an opportunity to pursue our common goals of security, prosperity and peace… Jared, I welcome you here in that spirit”.

A statement from the White House described the meeting as “productive” and said the two “discuss[ed] Israel’s priorities and potential next steps… acknowledging the critical role Israel plays in the security of the region”.

The statement added: “The United States officials and Israeli leadership underscored that forging peace will take time and the importance of doing everything possible to create an environment conducive to peacemaking.”

Kushner then travelled to the Palestinian city of Ramallah where he held two hours of talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas after Iftar.

Abbas’s spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said all major issues at the heart of the conflict were discussed. He added that “Kushner told President Abbas that President Trump is committed to reaching a serious peace deal”.

A senior Palestinian official reported that Tuesday’s preparatory meeting with Greenblatt became tense over the issue of Palestinian payments to terrorists.

Earlier in the day, Kushner and Friedman visited the family of Hadas Malka, a Border Patrol officer who was killed last Friday by Palestinian assailants in an attack in Jerusalem.

Kushner returned to the US on Wednesday evening, while Greenblatt is to remain in the region to discuss next steps in the peace process with both parties.