Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas meets with US Secretary of State John Kerry in the West Bank city of Ramallah on December 12, 2013.
Ramallah, West Bank:
A poll suggests a majority of Israelis and Palestinians supports the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel, but remains suspicious of the other side.
The survey was released on Wednesday, hours before U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's return to the region.
Kerry is trying to forge agreement on the outlines of a peace deal, but gaps remain.
In the poll, 63 per cent of 601 Israelis and 53 per cent of 1,270 Palestinians surveyed said they back a two-state solution.
Support dropped to 54 per cent and 46 per cent, respectively, when respondents were asked about specifics of a two-state deal.
The Israeli poll, by an Israeli university, had an error margin of 4.5 percentage points.
The Palestinian survey, by a West Bank think tank, had an error margin of 3 percentage points.
The survey was released on Wednesday, hours before U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's return to the region.
Kerry is trying to forge agreement on the outlines of a peace deal, but gaps remain.
In the poll, 63 per cent of 601 Israelis and 53 per cent of 1,270 Palestinians surveyed said they back a two-state solution.
Support dropped to 54 per cent and 46 per cent, respectively, when respondents were asked about specifics of a two-state deal.
The Israeli poll, by an Israeli university, had an error margin of 4.5 percentage points.
The Palestinian survey, by a West Bank think tank, had an error margin of 3 percentage points.
