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Abbas, Hamas discuss next Palestinian government

Posted on: Monday, 20 February 2006, 12:47 CST

GAZA (Reuters) - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas began talks with leaders of election winner Hamas on Monday on forming a government headed by the Islamic militant group.

Hamas officials said they expected Abbas to ask the group's choice for prime minister, Ismail Haniyeh, to put together a government. Earlier, Hamas held talks with militant factions, one of which, Islamic Jihad, declined to join up.

Once Abbas gives the nod to Haniyeh, a Hamas leader viewed by many Palestinians as a pragmatist, the 43-year-old Gazan will have up to five weeks to form an administration.

Hamas, a group dedicated to Israel's destruction, crushed Abbas's long-dominant Fatah faction in the January 25 parliamentary election on a platform pledging to root out corruption in the Palestinian Authority.

In a speech to the new parliament on Saturday, Abbas appealed to a future Hamas government to recognize past peace deals with Israel and commit itself to pursuing statehood through talks but stopped short of setting conditions for forming a cabinet.

Hamas swiftly rejected Abbas's call, but neither the group nor the president appeared ready for an immediate showdown.

Source: REUTERS

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