William Burns

Abed Rabbo also said Saturday that a Palestinian delegation would meet Thursday with Assistant Secretary of State William Burns in Jericho in a search for a way to end the conflict.

"We will test the American intentions," he told reporters."We hope that these intentions and ideas are serious and not just lip service to some Arab and European countries."

Mideast peace talks collapsed early last year.The two sides have had only sporadic discussions, mostly limited to security issues, in recent months.

Israeli troops moved into seven Palestinian cities and towns in June after a series of Palestinian suicide bombings.