First talks held between senior US official, Israeli settlement leaders

Jason Greenblatt, special envoy of US President Donald Trump, met Thursday with the heads of two Israeli settlements at a hotel in Jerusalem. The talks with Oded Ravivi, head of the Efrat Regional Council, and Yossi Dagan, head of the Shomron Regional Council, were the first of their kind between a senior US official and representatives of Israeli settlements. They discussed recent diplomatic initiatives and the continued building of settlements. Greenblatt was to meet later in the day with Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu and the country's chief rabbis.