Palestinian Leader Mahmoud Abbas has vowed that the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) doesn't seek to engage in a civil war, while making efforts to halt firing rockets at Israeli settlements, Palestinian dailies reported Tuesday.

Abbas was quoted as saying that he refuses to engage in a civil war, stressing on the importance of halting all actions by the factions in terms of firing rockets at Israeli settlements.

Abbas made the promise to foreign reporters at his headquarters in Gaza on Monday evening, according to the dailies.

Abbas said that "continuation of violations without having a Palestinian consensus is the responsibility of those who violate" in reference to the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas)'s firing of rockets at Israeli settlements.

He clarified that firing rockets harms the Palestinian question and is neither an offensive nor a defensive means "because it has no impact and more than 90 percent of the rockets fall in the Palestinian territories."

With regards to the Egyptian role, he said the Egyptian efforts come to stress on Cairo Declaration which inicludes calmness with Israel agreed by virous Palestinian factions.

Abbas said the Cairo Declaration must be respected and "we as an authority are committed to the Cairo understandings and to provide security in the homeland."

He said the PNA informed the Egyptian delegation about its position with regards to full truce and that the armed men must leave the streets and roads and so far we have not received any response from the Egyptian side.

Abbas affirmed that all those who opened fire at the security men and the police headquarters and who attacked police vehicles will be arrested.

"No one has the right to take the law by his own hands. We said we have to be committed to calmness and Israel has to do the same," he continued.

It was reported by Hamas that it paid a high price for the liberation of the land and that Hamas sons paid their blood for the liberation of Gaza and that the PNA must offer Hamas something in return.

When asked on the demand of Hamas on dismissing Interior Minister Nasr Yousef to diffuse the current crisis, Abbas said "if tomorrow they demand my resignation, should I accept?"

"This is a silly demand from Hamas and they have no right to have such a demand, Nasser Yousef was ratified by the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) and no one has this right but the PLC," he stressed.

Source: Xinhua