Abbas warns of talks between Hamas, Israel on temporary ceasefire in Gaza

Source:Xinhua Published: 2015-7-24 14:13:15

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas warned on Thursday of talks that Islamic Hamas movement is holding with Israel on a temporary truce in Gaza.

Abbas told a meeting for his Fatah Party in Ramallah that "this truce is aiming at a geographic separating of the Gaza Strip from the entire territories of the Palestinian homeland," according to the state-run Palestinian agency Wafa.

In recent weeks, there have been reports about international efforts to help reaching a long-term truce between Hamas and Israel based on ending the Israeli blockade and building up a seaport for Gaza.

At that time, Hamas did not deny that it had received ideas from a third international mediator without naming it. However, Hamas leaders said this can never happen with the accordance and acceptance of the Palestinian factions.

"We are determined to topple this project exactly as we had earlier toppled projects of conspiracy on our just cause," Abbas was quoted by Wafa as saying.

He added that the Palestinians "will establish our Palestinian state on all the Palestinian territories occupied in 1967 and Jerusalem will be its capital."

Meanwhile, Abbas strongly slammed Hamas movement, which has been controlling the Gaza Strip since June 2007, accusing it of rejecting to implement all the deals and understandings reached to end the internal Palestinian split.

"We are determined to end the division and gain back unity by implementing all the agreements reached in Doha or in Cairo," Abbas said, adding that "these agreements say that a technocrat government has to be formed and prepare for holding the general elections within six months."

He also accused Hamas of obstructing the performance of the consensus government which had been formed in June last year following an agreement between Hamas and Abbas Fatah Party to form it.

"In spite of all the difficulties made to obstruct the consensus government, it managed to do a lot in the field of reconstruction and relax the suffering of our people, mainly in the Gaza Strip," said Abbas.

Abbas added that the Palestinian leadership welcomes European efforts to revive the stalled Middle East peace process, noting that French ideas are as good as a base for launching the negotiations.

Late last month, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said his country has provided ideas on the resumption of the Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations which had been stalled for two years.

"The French ideas include a proposal of an international convoying to these talks either through groups or a certain mechanism in the final meters of the negotiations and work together until we all overcome these difficult meters," Fabius said.

Posted in: Mid-East

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