Mahmoud Abbas
Photo: AP
Abbas says Hamas in talks with Israel on Gaza
In interview with Al-Arabiya, Palestinian president claims Hamas, Israeli officials met in an attempt to end goods blockade on Gaza
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Thursday officials from the Islamist group Hamas were holding meetings with Israel to end the blockade of Gaza and ease access for goods and people.
Israel denied the meetings had taken place, saying there was a policy of avoiding contact with Hamas.
Blockade
Associated Press
‘Strip risks becoming virtually 100 percent aid dependent and isolated within a matter of months or weeks if the present regime of closure continues,’ says deputy head of UN Relief and Works Agency
Abbas, speaking in the Jordanian capital Amman after talks with King Abdullah, gave no further details of the Gaza discussions.
Israeli Defense Ministry Official Shlomo Dror said: "This is absolutely untrue. We do not have any meetings with Hamas. Indeed, there is a strict policy of avoiding all contacts with Hamas."
"The last meeting we held with Palestinians at the Erez crossing was with businesspeople who have no connections to Hamas. These were people known to us," he said.
"We don't have security information on every single person. If we find out someone is from Hamas, we have nothing to do with him."
Hamas seized control of Gaza in June after fighting with Abbas' security forces. Israel declared the Strip an "enemy entity" in September as the Islamist movement refused to halt firing makeshift rockets into Israel.
Israel has closed the Gaza border to everything but humanitarian supplies since Hamas routed Abbas' forces.
The cabinet is scheduled to hold further discussions on the matter and decide how to allow goods into the Strip in favor of the population, without inadvertently aiding Hamas.
Attila Somfalvi contributed to this report
