Israelis, Palestinians pledge to curb violence

Israel committed to stop authorisation of any settler outposts in the occupied West Bank for six months during a meeting on Sunday with Palestinian officials in Jordan when the sides pledged to de-escalate surging violence.

In a joint statement at the end of a meeting in the city Aqaba, Israel and Palestinian officials said they would work closely to prevent "further violence" and "reaffirmed the necessity of committing to de-escalation on the ground".

Host nation Jordan, along with Egypt and the United States, considered "these understandings as major progress towards re-establishing and deepening relations between the two sides," the statement said.

The meeting was held as anxiety mounts of escalation in the run-up to the holy month of Ramadan that begins in late March.

Palestinian factions, including the Hamas group, which governs the Gaza Strip, condemned the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority for taking part in the meeting.

The meeting brought together top Israeli and Palestinian security chiefs for the first time in many years, officials said, and aimed to restore calm in Israel, the Israeli-occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

Israel and the Palestinian Authority "confirmed their joint readiness and commitment to immediately work to end unilateral measures for a period of 3-6 months", the statement said.

"This includes an Israeli commitment to stop discussion of any new settlement units for four months and to stop authorisation of any outposts for six months," the statement said.

The UN Security Council issued a formal statement denouncing Israel's plan to expand settlements on occupied Palestinian territory, the first action the United States has allowed the body to take against its ally Israel in six years.