Abbas warns Israel against taking unilateral steps
(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-05-15 17:26 Palestinian President Mahmoud
Abbas urged Hamas to renounce violence and respect peace deals on Monday, while
also warning Israel that taking a unilateral approach to peace making would fuel
extremism.
In a speech to mark the anniversary of the founding of the state of Israel, a
day Palestinians call Nakba, or the great catastrophe, Abbas urged the militant
Islamist movement Hamas to be pragmatic and embrace existing Middle East peace
deals.
"We must not suffice with fiery speeches and slogans that could bring about
international isolation," Abbas said, without referring directly to Hamas, which
came to power in March.
Such speeches, he said, "more dangerously make us fall into the trap that
Israel wants, which is to reject to negotiate using the excuse that there is no
Palestinian partner."
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