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Hamas: Abbas not authorized to negotiate with Israel

Arab World Materials 25 August 2010 01:12 (UTC +04:00)
The head of the Islamist Hamas movement said Tuesday that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was not a legitimate leader and was not authorized to negotiate with Israel next month, dpa reported.
Hamas: Abbas not authorized to negotiate with Israel

The head of the Islamist Hamas movement said Tuesday that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was not a legitimate leader and was not authorized to negotiate with Israel next month, dpa reported.

Khaled Mashaal, the head of the Hamas politburo, said there was "no consensus on the negotiations" among the Palestinians and that Abbas was heading to the talks with Israel in the United States under duress from Washington.

He called the planned direct talks between Israel and the Palestinian leader to be a "farce," saying the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) had not given its approval.

The PLO is meant to be the supreme umbrella organization of the Palestinians, though Hamas is not a member.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Abbas are set to meet with US President Barak Obama in Washington early next month to restart direct talks after months of indirect negotiations.

Egyptian President Hosny Mubarak and King Abdullah of Jordan are also expected to attend.

Mashaal, speaking at an iftar, or meal to break the Ramadan fast, called on the two Arab leaders to turn down the invite.

Earlier this month, radical Palestinian leftist and Islamist groups, including the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and Hamas, rejected direct talks between the sides.

The so called rejectionist front has long opposed talks with Israel and any concessions on the Palestinian side.

Hamas and Abbas' more secular Fatah party have been at odds for years, a feud which worsened when the Islamists took over the Gaza Strip and the president failed to hold new elections for parliament and his post as scheduled.

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