U.S. envoy Anthony Zinni's return to the scene of Israeli-Palestinian fighting was marked by renewed violence.

A gun battle was reported overnight Thursday in the Gaza Strip near the Jewish settlement bloc of Katif. In the West Bank city of Hebron, Israeli commandos captured four Jihad members charged with carrying out attacks against Israelis. Meanwhile, Israel continued to dismantle military checkpoints near Hebron and Bethlehem as Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon convened the security cabinet to discuss Zinni's visit.

Zinni is launching a new Middle East peace mission meant to seal an Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire.

Zinni opens talks on Thursday with Israeli leaders and will later meet Palestinian security chiefs.

U.S. officials said Zinni will ask the Palestinian Authority to end attacks on Israel and dismantle what they termed the terrorist infrastructure of such groups as Hamas and Islamic Jihad. Both groups have said they would continue attacks on Israel despite appeals from PA Chairman Yasser Arafat for a ceasefire.

Zinni, the officials said, would ask Israel to offer the Palestinians a series of humanitarian gestures. In addition, they said, the U.S. envoy would seek to begin implementation of a series of recommendations meant to end the 15-month-old war and return to diplomatic negotiations.

"General Zinni will continue to focus the Palestinian Authority on security steps to combat terror and to dismantle the terrorist infrastructure, and to promote a continued reduction in the level of violence," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said on Tuesday.

"He'll also discuss with Israeli -- he'll also discuss with Israel economic measures that they can take to ease the pressure on the Palestinian population. His return is part of the continuing U.S. effort to help the parties end the violence, restore confidence, and resume a political process."

An initial step for Zinni, the officials said, would be to persuade Israel to allow Arafat to leave Ramallah. U.S. officials said Arafat has taken steps to end attacks against Israel. For its part, Israel has vowed to keep Arafat trapped in the West Bank city until he arrests the suspected killers of an Israeli minister.

Both Israeli and Palestinian leaders convened separately to discuss the Zinni mission. Zinni is expected to remain in the area until Monday and then return to Washington to brief U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell.

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