President Barack Obama has said that the United States is "deeply committed" to the creation of an "independent, sovereign state of Palestine".
"Put simply, Palestinians deserve a state of their own," he said at news conference after talks with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
He added that Israeli settlement activity was not "constructive or appropriate for peace".
Mr Abbas said the two men had held "good and useful" talks in Ramallah.
However, Palestinian expectations of Mr Obama's visit have been low, analysts say.
On his first visit to Israel as US president on Wednesday, Mr Obama vowed strong support for the country.
At talks on Wednesday, the US leader and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reaffirmed their commitment to a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict
Speaking in Jerusalem, Mr Obama said a central element of securing a lasting peace in the Middle East "must be a strong and secure Jewish state where its security concerns are met, alongside a sovereign and independent Palestinian state".
Two rockets were fired from Gaza into southern Israel on Thursday morning, Israeli officials say, but there were no reports of anyone being hurt. A further two rockets fired from Gaza reportedly fell inside Gaza itself.
Mr Abbas condemned "violence against civilians, whatever its source, including the firing of rockets", according to a Palestinian spokesperson.
BBC
