**US Middle East envoy George Mitchell is engaged in a fresh round of shuttle diplomacy to find agreement on Jewish settlements in the West Bank.**Mr Mitchell held two hours of talks with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Tuesday.
He later headed to Ramallah to meet Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas.
The Palestinians have said they will not take part in new peace talks unless Israel halts construction on occupied land in the West Bank.
But Mr Netanyahu has rebuffed US demands for a total freeze on such building work.
Neither Mr Mitchell nor Mr Netanyahu made a statement after their meeting, but the Israeli prime minister’s office said they had agreed to meet again on Wednesday.
As he entered the meeting, Mr Mitchell told reporters: “We hope to bring this phase of our discussions to an early conclusion and to move forward in our common search for a comprehensive peace in the region.”
On Monday Mr Netanyahu is reported to have told the Knesset’s security and foreign affairs committee that Mr Mitchell had requested a complete halt to the building work.
He said he had told the US that Israel would finish buildings already under construction but would consider scaling down construction, a parliamentary official quoted him as saying.
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