State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said the death of seven people in fresh clashes on Thursday was "terrible." More than 600 people have been killed in the past three weeks over the disputed re-election of President Mwai Kibaki.

"Both sides bear responsibility for the fact that there is still violence. That violence springs from the fact that there are clashes because of the political deadlock," McCormack told reporters. "More than anything else they need to come together for the Kenyan people and for Kenya's future."

Asked whether Kenya's opposition should cancel protests as a way to avoid further violence, McCormack said people had the right to demonstrate peacefully.

"But people should ask whether energy would be better devoted towards organizing demonstrations or protests, or better directed towards actually trying to engage in a constructive dialogue," he said. "One might say the same thing for the actions of the government."

McCormack said former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan was soon expected in Nairobi to open up channels of communication between Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga, who claims the Dec. 27 election was stolen from him.

He said the State Department did not plan to send back to Kenya its top diplomat for Africa, Jendayi Frazer, who returned to Washington last week after failing to get a deal.

"We are talking about other things we might do," he said but refused to comment further.

Asked whether the United States was considering sanctions against Kenyan politicians who were not being cooperative, as has been the strategy in other conflicts, McCormack said he was not aware that was part of the discussion.

The European Parliament recommended budgetary aid be frozen until the crisis is solved.

Speaking from Nairobi on Wednesday to a Washington think-tank, U.S. Ambassador to Kenya Michael Ranneberger said he did not believe there was an appetite within the Bush administration to impose sanctions.

"Sanctions are not on the table at this point. It is not useful to speculate on that," Ranneberger told the briefing at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.