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Kerry Returns to Israel for Peace Talks


FILE - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry testifies before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Dec. 10, 2013.
FILE - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry testifies before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Dec. 10, 2013.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry headed back to the Middle East on Thursday, a week after his previous visit ended with Palestinian dissatisfaction over U.S. ideas for an elusive peace deal with Israel.

Kerry's scheduled meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres in Jerusalem was postponed due to the snowstorm which hit the city.

But the top U.S. diplomat is expected to meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah in the West Bank.

The State Department says Kerry will "continue the conversation" from his visit with Israeli and Palestinian leaders last week as the two sides continue to negotiate the major issues of a long-sought peace deal.

State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the meetings would cover "all of the issues that are on the table," including security.

Kerry said last week he believed they were closer to an agreement than they have been in years.

On Monday, he met with Israeli chief negotiator Tzipi Livni and her Palestinian counterpart Saeb Erekat in Washington for about three hours.

Israel and the Palestinians relaunched the U.S.-brokered talks in late July, and agreed to continue meeting for nine months.
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