Abbas may call early Palestinian polls, aides say

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas may appoint an emergency government or call early elections after the latest efforts to form a unity coalition with Hamas failed, his aides said on Tuesday.

The Hamas Islamist movement denied talks were at a dead end, but said the latest initiative, presented in Gaza by Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani, was unacceptable because it included recognition of Israel. (Reuters)