Hamas-led gov'nt spokesman calls for speeding up forming coalition gov't

A spokesman for the Hamas-led government Thursday called for speeding up the formation of a coalition government in a bid to overcome the current crises on the Palestinian territories.

"If the national-unity government would get us out of the current crisis, we have then to make this project succeed," said Ghazi Hamad.

However, Hamad called on the Palestinian people to give time to the government which was formed less than six months.

Hamad's call came amid widening strikes by some 165,000 unpaid government employees.

Hamad said that the employees have the right to go on strike, terming the strike as legitimate. However, he criticized what he called "the sudden jump to the strike," saying the employees should have threaded with the strike before carrying it out.

The strike combined with widespread public criticism against Hamas and the government under its control. A number of Palestinian officials from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party have openly called on the government to quit or, otherwise, carry out its obligations before the people.

Condemning the wishes that the government fall, Hamad has warned against the violence and consequences that could happen if the Hamas-led government collapsed.

"We don't want Hamas or Fatah to fall down because this means the Palestinian people will also collapse," said Hamad.

On Aug. 17, Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haneya agreed on forming a coalition government to replace incumbent Hamas-led one in a bid to overcome current economic and political crises.

Source: Xinhua