US Secretary of State John Kerry urged both the Palestinians and Israelis to halt "all incitement" and violence, after three weeks of violence sparked fears of a new Palestinian intifada or uprising.
"It is absolutely critical to end all incitement, to end all violence and to find a road forward to build the possibility, which is not there today, for a larger process," he told journalists, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu next to him as the two leaders began talks in Berlin.
"Today, we, you and I, can rekindle that process," Kerry told Netanyahu. "We've been at this, we know each other well, I believe we have the ability to make a difference." He added that he had spoken on the phone with Jordan's King Abdullah II and Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas over the past 24 hours.
"I believe people want this to de-escalate. So, let's go to work and see what we can do," said Kerry.
The two politicians, who have known each other for years, last held talks at the end of September in New York, just before the recent wave of violence erupted in Israel and the Palestinian territories on October 1. Netanyahu once again repeated his assertion that Abbas was to blame for fanning the violence.
"There is no question that this wave of attacks was driven directly by the incitement, the incitement of Hamas, the incitement of the Islamist movement in Israel and the incitement, I am sorry to say, from president Abbas and the Palestinian Authority," said Netanyahu.
"I think it is time for the international community to say clearly to president Abbas: stop spreading lies about the state of Israel," he added.
