- Title: USA-KERRY/SPAIN Kerry says to meet on Israel-Palestinian unrest, Syria in Europe
- Date: 19th October 2015
- Summary: MADRID, SPAIN (OCTOBER 19, 2015) (REUTERS) ***WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE JOHN KERRY ARRIVING WITH SPANISH FOREIGN MINISTER JOSE MANUEL GARCIA-MARGALLO / KERRY GREETING PEOPLE KERRY AND GARCIA-MARGALLO TAKING SEAT FOR SIGNING OF DOCUMENTS KERRY AND GARCIA-MARGALLO SIGNING DOCUMENTS AND TALKING KERRY AND GARCIA-MARGALLO EXCHANGING DOCUMENTS
- Embargoed: 3rd November 2015 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Spain
- Country: Spain
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVAA962Q0KOZY4LPVWL6MZJ0DS14
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Monday (October 19) it was important that Israeli and Palestinian leaders clarify the status around Jerusalem's al-Aqsa mosque compound and agree on steps to calm unrest during talks this week.
Daily attacks in Israel have sparked a sense of panic in violence triggered in part by Palestinians' anger over what they see as increased Jewish encroachment on the al-Aqsa mosque, which is Islam's holiest site outside Saudi Arabia and also revered by Jews as the location of two destroyed biblical temples.
Kerry said Israel had a right to protect itself against random acts of violence, and in his conversations with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the Israeli leader said he was committed to maintaining the status quo at the holy site.
"We continue to urge everybody to exercise restraint and restrain from any kind of self-help in terms of the violence, and Israel has every right in the world to protect its citizens as it has been from random acts of violence," Kerry told a news conference in Madrid after meeting with his Spanish counterpart, Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo.
He added that he did not expect any changes in the status quo at the holy site.
Kerry will meet with Netanyahu in Germany and separately with President Mahmoud Abbas and Jordan's King Abdullah at the end of the week to discuss ways to end the violence.
"I don't have specific expectations except to try to move things forward, and it'll depend on the conversations themselves as to what is it that we're able to define," Kerry said of the upcoming meeting.
He added that he will hold a meeting this week in Europe with counterparts from Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Russia to explore options for a political transition in Syria. He also discussed the fight against Islamic State during his meeting with Garcia-Margallo.
"Spain has contributed, as he said, some 300 military trainers to support the Iraqi military effort, and we're also moving ahead with actions to disrupt Daesh's financing, and particularly to repudiate its message of hate," said the Secretary of State, using the Arabic acronym for Islamic State, which is also known as ISIS or ISIL.
"The campaign against Daesh will require a multi-year commitment, but as we have learned both in my country and in Spain, defeating terrorists is not an option, it is a necessity," he continued to say.
"Everybody including the Russians, the Iranians, have all said there's no military solution, so we need to get about the effort of finding a political solution. This is a human catastrophe unfolding before our eyes, and it's a catastrophe that threatens the integrity of a whole group of countries around the region, not just to the west of Europe, but also to the East. It's important for us to respond," he told reporters.
Kerry will travel back to Washington on Monday for talks at the White House before returning to Europe. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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