Ramallah, West Bank, March 24, SPA -- A senior Palestinian officialsaid Thursday he will ask visiting U.S. envoys to helpblock the expansion of the largest Jewish settlement in theWest Bank, warning that the planned construction would cutoff east Al-Quds city _ the Palestinians' intended capital _from territory they seek for a future state. The envoys, National Security Council official ElliottAbrams and David Welch, assistant secretary of state forthe Near East, asked Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon onWednesday about the planned expansion of the Maaleh Adumimsettlement, located five kilometers (three miles) east ofAl-Quds city. Israel plans to build 3,500 more homes in MaalehAdumim, driving a wedge between east Al-Quds city and the WestBank. Saeb Erekat, the chief Palestinian negotiator, said theMaaleh Adumim expansion would top his agenda talks laterThursday with Abrams and Welch. "The most important thingat this stage is to ... stop settlement activities,"Erekat said. U.S. State Department officials have said the envoys wereseeking clarifications from Israel on the expansion plans _language that implies criticism, according to a report of the Associated Press.--SPA1334 Local Time 1034 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/249512