U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf met with Israel’s National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi in Jerusalem on Thursday.
Leaf expressed condolences on behalf of the Biden administration for Tuesday’s Palestinian terrorist attack near the town of Eli in Samaria that killed four Israeli civilians and wounded four others, according to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office.
Leaf and Hanegbi discussed ways to de-escalate the situation in Judea and Samaria, including building upon meetings held earlier this year in Aqaba, Jordan, and Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, that included Israel and the United States in addition to Egypt, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority.
Leaf and Hanegbi also discussed expanding the Abraham Accords, which the Biden administration is trying to get Saudi Arabia to join.
Leaf told a U.S. Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee earlier this month that Israeli-Saudi normalization “is an end goal for us,” adding that “we also see plenty of space to get things done” short of establishing diplomatic relations.
The U.S. diplomat is visiting Israel and the Palestinian Authority before heading to Jordan on Saturday for a two-day stay.
