Israel has asked to hold talks with Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, to calm the recent surge of violence in the country.

Amidst the alleged ongoing attacks on Israelis, Prime Minister Netanyahu, said he is “perfectly open” to a meeting that might be “potentially useful”.

He also defended a massive security deployment in Jerusalem, following a wave of knife attacks by Palestinians.

Near-daily attacks have left seven Israelis dead and dozens wounded over the past fortnight.

Several of the attackers were also among at least 30 Palestinians who have been killed in recent violence.