John Kerry. Photo: State Department.

Bloomberg – Secretary of State John Kerry met today in Amman with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the king of Jordan for hastily arranged talks on Israeli-Palestinian tensions amid a surge in violence.

The top U.S. diplomat arrived in the Jordanian capital late yesterday hours after Israel announced the approval of an additional 200 new homes in east Jerusalem. The Amman stop was added to Kerry’s itinerary at the last minute “given the events on the ground,” State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said yesterday in Washington. Kerry had been expected to travel to Washington from China yesterday.

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