Kerry signals ‘cautious optimism’ after talks with Israel PM

US Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday expressed "cautious optimism" about defusing the latest round of Israeli-Palestinian tensions after four hours of talks in Berlin with Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu, Agence France-Presse reported.

The two met as part of a flurry of diplomatic activity aimed at halting the cycle of unrest, which erupted on October 1 and has raised fears of a new Palestinian Intifada, or uprising.

Following the four-hour meeting, Kerry said he had "a cautious measure of optimism that there may be some things that could be, in the next couple of days, put on the table".

The aim was to encourage all parties "that there is a way to defuse the situation and begin a way forward", he said.

State Department spokesman John Kirby said "constructive proposals" had been raised at the talks which included "steps Israel could take to reaffirm yet again the continued commitment to maintaining the status quo" at the flashpoint Al Aqsa Mosque compound.

"If parties want to try — and I believe they do want to move to a de-escalation — I think there are sets of choices that are available," he said, expressing hope that "we can seize this moment and pull back from the precipice"

Meanwhile, Israeli forces said they shot dead a Palestinian and wounded another on Thursday after the two stabbed a Jewish seminary student near occupied Jerusalem, Reuters reported.

Describing the morning attack in the town of Beit Shemesh, Israeli forces said the two Palestinian assailants from the occupied West Bank stabbed the student at a bus stop. He was taken to hospital, as was the surviving attacker.

Nine Israelis have been killed in Palestinian stabbings, shootings and vehicle attacks since the start of October. Forty-nine Palestinians, among them children, have been killed in attacks and during anti-Israeli protests, according to Reuters.