A senior leader of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) Mahmoud al-Zahar in Gaza said his movement rejects the principle of holding new early legislative elections in the Palestinian territories.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called on Hamas movement on Monday for opening a new era based on dialogue, calling on the movement to end its control of the Gaza Strip that has been going on since mid June.
Al-Zahar also rejected Abbas calls for what he termed as "a conditioned dialogue" between rival Hamas and Fatah movements, adding "We are ready to press on our wounds and open a new page of unconditioned dialogue with Abbas."
Abbas reiterated his proposal for holding early elections in the Palestinian territories to get out on an internal crisis that harvested the lives of hundreds of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip over the past year.
Al-Zahar told a news conference in Gaza "Abu Mazen (President Abbas) didn't present any new initiative, he was repeating earlier initiative that contains a resumption of the dialogue with preconditions."
"We are ready for unconditioned dialogue. If we sit on the same table, each side has the right to present what it has, and each side has the right to reject or accept what the other presents," said al-Zahar.
Al-Zahar presented an initiative, saying "we should first end all kinds of incitement, and use the mass media for rebuilding confidence and calling for a national unity."
He also said that dialogue can be resumed "without any preconditions, then while we are sitting and talking together, we can discuss everything in the agenda of the dialogue that should be under an Arab sponsorship."
There was no immediate response so far on al-Zahar's initiative. However, Ahmed Abdel Rahman, Fatah movement's spokesman in the West Bank called on Hamas movement as "a criminal movement that kills its people in cold blood."
Clashes between Fatah supporters and Hamas police forces had left eight people killed and over thirty wounded in the Gaza Strip overnight and early Tuesday.
Hamas prevented Fatah supporters from celebrating the 43 year anniversary for their movement's founding. The prevention was a respond to preventing Hamas from celebrating in the West Bank on Dec. 15.
Source: Xinhua
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