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Middle East conflict

Russia ready to step up efforts for settling Israeli-Palestinian conflict — ministry

Russian deputy foreign minister discussed the issue with ambassadors of Palestine and Jordan

MOSCOW, May 12. /TASS/. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin reaffirmed Moscow’s readiness to step up its Israeli-Palestinian peace process efforts at a meeting with the ambassadors of Palestine and Jordan, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

"The Russian side reaffirmed readiness to further intensify efforts in this domain, including with the help of opportunities presented by the Middle East Quartet of international mediators," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

During the meeting, the ambassadors of Palestine and Jordan, Abdel Hafiz Nofal and Khaled Shawabkeh, conveyed the coordinated stance of their states regarding the recent escalation in East Jerusalem and around the Gaza Strip.

The foreign diplomats "stressed inadmissibility of Israel’s plans to evict Palestinians from their homes in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, and of its violent actions in the Al-Aqsa mosque."

"In connection with the rapidly deteriorating security situation, a commonly shared opinion was expressed, about the need to end violence and resume a sustainable Israeli-Palestinian negotiation process as soon as possible, with the goal of finding compromise solutions to all issues related to the final status," the ministry said.

The meeting was held on a request from the Palestinian and Jordanian diplomats.

An exchange of missile strikes between Israel and Palestinian radicals from the Gaza Strip followed an outburst of unrest near the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem’s Old City in early May. More than 700 people have been hurt in riots in recent days. Clashes between the Palestinians and the Israeli police were triggered by an Israeli court ruling to seize dwelling houses in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood from Arab families who have been living there for more than 50 years in favor of Jewish resettlers who had reportedly owned these buildings before 1948. The houses allocated by Jordan as the custodian of Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem are located some 500 meters from Al-Aqsa.

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