Hamas said Tuesday that it doesn't rule out that Israeli threats to invade the Gaza Strip were meant to pave the way for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and his forces to return to the Hamas-run territory.
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, however, told media that his organization "will not allow this scenario from coming into being". "Such a return should happen through dialogue," he added.
In June, Hamas routed pro-Abbas security forces in fierce fighting and took control of Gaza. Abbas boosted his control on the West Bank and his forces launched a crackdown on Hamas to prevent another takeover.
Abbas also fired a Hamas-led government and formed a Western-backed administration based in the West Bank, while rejecting talks with Hamas which continued administrating the Gaza Strip under tight Israeli siege.
Asked if Hamas still interested in dialogue with Abbas, Abu Zuhri said the chance for talks "still existed but started to vanish under the shadow of Abbas' liaison with the occupation to strike Gaza and Hamas."
Abu Zuhri said that Israeli operations against the Gaza Strip aim at weakening Hamas, adding the military escalation was a result of Annapolis peace conference which the U.S. has hosted in late November to revive talks between Abbas and Israel.
Source: Xinhua
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