JERUSALEM, (AP) – Israel’s defense minister says he will soon allow 600 foreign-trained Palestinian police to take up positions in the West Bank town of Jenin, a site of frequent clashes between Israeli soldiers and Palestinian militants.

Barak says he is considering other relief measures to bolster Palestinian moderates who run the West Bank amid a push for peace talks.

His announcement comes as talks sponsored by Yemen to reconcile Palestinian factions of Fatah, which dominates the West Bank government, and Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, have unraveled.

The police have been receiving special training in neighboring Jordan since January.