MARRAKECH, MOROCCO - Palestinian foreign minister Riyad al-Malki said Monday he was 'satisfied' with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's explanation that Washington's position on settlements had not changed.

'We were surprised by the statements (from Clinton previously) and, from our point of view, that did not correspond to what we had heard in Abu Dhabi,' al-Malki told journalists.

'I think that those statements were later corrected. So, we are satisfied that position has been straightened out.'

Both Clinton and al-Malki were participating in an international conference of Arab foreign ministers in Marrakech, Morocco.

The United States had previously urged a total halt to new Israeli construction in the occupied West Bank as a precursor to new Mideast peace negotiations.

But on Saturday Clinton said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's offer to restrict new building was 'unprecedented'.