JERUSALEM (AP) — The U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem says Israeli and Palestinian negotiators have met to try and overcome a “crisis” in the troubled peace talks.
A statement from the mission says the two sides met late Sunday and asked the U.S. to arrange another meeting Monday. The consulate says the meeting was “serious and constructive.”
Last week, U.S. efforts to extend the talks past a late April deadline were shattered after Israel failed to carry out a planned prisoner release and the Palestinians revived a charged campaign for international recognition of the “state of Palestine.”
After the breakdown, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry — who was instrumental in reviving the talks last July after a five-year impasse — expressed impatience with both sides, saying the U.S. would re-evaluate its mediator role.
