John Kerry seeks movement in Israeli, Palestinian talks

BETHLEHEM, West Bank — U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry waded again into the nitty-gritty of faltering Israeli-Palestinian peace talks on Wednesday, saying he was optimistic that tensions and difficulties could be overcome, even as both sides traded barbs about who is to blame for the current poor state of negotiations.

“As in any negotiation there will be moments of up and moments of down,” Kerry told Palestinians in the West Bank town of Bethlehem after meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem and before seeing Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. “But … we are determined to try to bring lasting peace to this region.”