Hamas presents its pick for Palestinian PM (AP) Updated: 2006-02-21 08:44
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Hamas presented a pragmatic former university
administrator as its choice for Palestinian prime minister Monday and the
Islamic militant group reached out to Fatah and other factions to join a
broad-based Cabinet that might stand a chance of gaining international approval.
Hamas leader Ismail
Haniyeh, expecting to be named the next Palestinian prime minister,
center, waves as he arrives for the talks with Palestinian Authority
President Mahmoud Abbas, also known as Abu Mazen, in Gaza City, Monday,
Feb. 20, 2006. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas began a meeting Monday
with Ismail Haniyeh whose group won an overwhelming majority in Jan. 25
parliamentary elections, and will have five weeks to form a Cabinet. (AP
Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko) |
Officials said Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas would give Ismail Haniyeh his
formal letter of appointment on Tuesday, a step toward installing the first
government to be headed by Hamas, which swept parliamentary elections last
month.
Haniyeh, 43, told reporters after meeting with Abbas that he would try to
form a joint government with Fatah, the traditional Palestinian ruling party
that Hamas trounced in the election, "that can shoulder its responsibilities in
the political area and internal issues." So far, Fatah has refused to join.
He also criticized Israel's decision over the weekend to freeze the transfer
of tax funds to the Palestinian Authority after Hamas took control of the
parliament.
"The Israelis are trying to starve innocent people by taking money from our
taxes, and we are going to fight this by all legal means," he said. "This
collective punishment will not break the determination of the Palestinian
people."
Hamas, which calls for the destruction of Israel and is responsible for
dozens of suicide bombings, is trying to persuade other Palestinian factions to
join a coalition, hoping to persuade the world that the new Cabinet represents
all the Palestinians and should not be the target of a boycott.
Another Hamas leader, Mahmoud Zahar, met with other militant factions Monday
— Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine — to try
to gain their support.
|