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| By Associated Press March 25, 2006 |
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Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas plans to warn the incoming government led by Hamas that it has no future unless it agrees to recognize Israel, a British newspaper reported Saturday.
The Guardian said Abbas, popularly known as Abu Mazen, intends to have a letter delivered Saturday to Hamas' prime minister-designate, Ismail Haniyeh, outlining his fundamental disagreements with the new government's program.
Hamas, whose Cabinet is to be sworn in on Thursday, rejects Israel's right to exist, and despite Western threats of an aid cutoff, has refused to abandon its violent ideology.
The Guardian newspaper said the letter, which it saw, told Haniyeh that Hamas' policies would damage or reverse "diplomatic achievements," give Israel a pretext not to negotiate, and cost the Palestinian Authority much-needed foreign aid.
Sources close to Abbas said the letter was meant to "draw the battle lines" with Hamas, which has no experience in national politics, but also to warn Israel and the West that threats to sever aid and ties would likely strengthen the Islamist party, the newspaper said.
"Abu Mazen doesn't want Hamas to fail, he wants it to transform, to accept the basic tenets of the political system," the source said.
But a Western aid cutoff could play into Hamas' hands, the source cautioned.
"Under no circumstances will Abu Mazen allow it to be seen that a Hamas government is failing as a result of a foreign conspiracy. This works for Hamas," he said. "To avoid the perception they fail because of a foreign conspiracy we need the world to show that it is still willing to support the moderate line and not just cut us off."
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