Trump's son-in-law launches ME peace push

US President Donald Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, met Israeli and Palestinian leaders on Wednesday to try to revive long-fractured Middle East peacemaking that Washington acknowledged will take some time.

Kushner, a 36-year-old real estate developer with little experience of international diplomacy or political negotiation, arrived in Israel on Wednesday morning and was due to spend barely 20 hours on the ground.

Video showed him giving Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a friend of Kushner's father, a handshake and a hug as they prepared to sit down with the Israeli ambassador to Washington, the US ambassador to Israel and other senior officials for preliminary discussions.

Kushner travelled to Ramallah, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, for two hours of talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rdainah said all major issues at the heart of the conflict were discussed.

US officials called the trip part of an effort to keep the conversation going rather than the launching of a new phase in the peace process, saying that Kushner and Jason Greenblatt, the president's special representative for international negotiations, are likely to return often.