 Mahmoud Abbas says he is ready to hold peace talks with Israel, but is warning that he might resign his post if the Palestinian parliament, to be elected on 25 January, opposes his platform.| When he resigns, will anybody notice? |
The Palestinian president said talks with Ehud Olmert, Israel's acting prime minister, should be held as soon as possible. "I am ready to meet him as soon as possible and I hope to sit round the negotiating table immediately," Abbas said in Ram Allah on Wednesday. "The only way we can forge peace is through negotiations and not through killings, assassinations, attacks and unilateral measures."
However, Hamas, which has spearheaded the resistance against Israel in recent years, is expected to make a strong challenge to Abbas' ruling Fatah party and earn a place in the next government. A coalition government involving Hamas could make it difficult for Israel and the Palestinians to restart long-frozen peace efforts.| Yeah, and a gas tank full of sugar could make it difficult to start my car... |
"If I feel that I can't fulfil this programme ... then the seat is not my ultimate ambition," Abbas said, referring to his post as Palestinian president. Abbas's comments came after Olmert said on Tuesday he hoped to resume negotiations with the Palestinian leadership after Israel's general election on 28 March. |