Palestinian president warns Hamas
JERUSALEM – Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas warned in an interview broadcast Monday that he has the authority to dismiss the Hamas-led Palestinian government, the latest sign of a deepening rift in the Palestinian leadership.
Abbas and the newly elected government headed by Hamas have been locked in a steadily escalating power struggle since the Palestinian Cabinet took office nearly a month ago.
On Friday Abbas vetoed a government plan to appoint a prominent militant to a senior security post and form a new security force manned by members of armed factions.
The government said it would stick by the plan, and Hamas’s exiled leader, Khaled Mashaal, accused Abbas of “plotting against us,” setting off street clashes between supporters of Hamas and Abbas’s Fatah party at two Gaza universities Saturday.
Abbas supports peace negotiations with Israel and has demanded that the government accept agreements and understandings reached with the Israelis. Hamas, whose charter calls for Israel’s destruction, has rejected talks with Israel.
In an interview broadcast on CNN in Turkish, Abbas, who is visiting Turkey, said Hamas has to talk to Israel or risk economic collapse due to a cutoff of foreign aid. The United States and the European Union have suspended direct aid to the Hamas-led government, demanding that it recognize Israel, reject violence and accept earlier agreements.
“Hamas is still acting as if it were in opposition, not in government,” Abbas said. “Hamas has to face the facts and establish contact with Israel to meet the daily needs of the Palestinian people. I’m worried that the situation will turn into a tragedy in the near future. A short time later, we could be up against a great hunger disaster in Palestine. Without help we can’t stand on our feet long.”
Abbas said the government should be given time to change its stances, but warned he has power to dismiss it. “The constitution gives me clear and definite authority to remove a government from power, but I don’t want to use this authority,” he said. “Everyone should know that by law this power is in my hands.”
His aides said the remarks were a warning to Mashaal, and that Abbas would only act if conditions in the Palestinian areas become “catastrophic,” the Associated Press reported.
Abbas could ask someone else to form a new Cabinet, which would have to be approved by the Hamas-controlled legislature. If that failed, Abbas could order new elections.