Netanyahu arrives in Germany for talks with Angela Merkel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to meet Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin on Wednesday amid escalating violence in his nation.

Merkel and Netanyahu are to holds talks on the current security situation facing Israel as well the current tensions in the Middle East ahead of a meeting in Berlin on Thursday between the Israeli leader and US Secretary of State John Kerry.

Netanyahu's visit to Germany comes against the backdrop of a series of attacks on Israelis carried out by Palestinians.

Merkel believes that a peace settlement in the Middle East needs to be based on a two-state solution with a Palestinian state that exists in peace alongside Israel.

The chancellor has, however, failed in previous meetings with Netanyahu to convince the Israeli leader to end his government's controversial policy of expanding Jewish settlements into Palestinian areas.

The settlements issue is likely to play a role again in their talks on Wednesday, officials in Berlin said.