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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Abbas slams Hamas, demands PLO recognition |
| 2009-02-02 |
| The acting Palestinian authority chief blames Hamas for putting Gazan lives in danger, a day before Palestinian groups discuss a Gaza ceasefire in Cairo. Mahmoud Abbas lashed out at Hamas saying the resistance group has taken risks with the 'blood of Palestinians, with their fate, and dreams and aspirations for the independent Palestinian state'. Talking to the press in Cairo on Sunday, Abbas also blamed Hamas of trying to destroy the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). He also rejected dialogue with any group 'which does not recognize the PLO'. Abbas claimed that "today Hamas emerges upon us with a destructive project, which we have heard before ... and which has went to the rubbish bin of history", AFP quoted him as saying. Abbas ruled out dialogue with Hamas unless it recognizes the supremacy of the PLO, saying, "They must admit without equivocation or ambiguity that the organization is the sole and only representative of the Palestinian people. Then there will be dialogue." Abbas was responding to last week's statement by the head of the Hamas politburo, Khaled Mashaal, from exile in Damascus, that the PLO had become obsolete and that Palestinians need a 'new, national authority.' PLO was founded by Egypt in 1964 and Fatah took over it in 1968. Abbas is scheduled to meet Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on Monday before Palestinian groups, who have gathered in Cairo, begin Gaza ceasefire talks. Egypt has been mediating a truce after Hamas and Israel announced ceasefires on January 18, ending Israel's devastating 22-day war on the Gaza Strip that killed more than 1,330 Palestinians and injured over 5,400 Gazans, mostly civilians. A Hamas delegation was due to arrive in Cairo on Monday, to join another delegation already in the country, a Hamas official said. An advisor to Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniya, Ahmed Yusef, who heads the Hamas government in Gaza City, told AFP that the group was awaiting Israel's response to the Egyptian truce proposal. "We can speak with details about the truce after our delegation examines the Israeli response," Ahmed Yusef said, adding that Hamas expected the response by Monday. Hamas says that Abbas is desperate to maintain his hold on power, although his legal term as president is over, and has chosen to forgo national unity and is relying on support from the US and Israel to tighten his hold on the West Bank and target Gaza. |
| Posted by:Fred |