ABBAS
RAMALLAH, (REUTERS):
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas gave the Hamas government another 48 hours beyond yesterday deadline to accept a manifesto implicitly recognising Israel or face a referendum on the issue.
Hamas, an Islamic militant group, swept to power in January elections and has been locked in a power struggle with Abbas ever since. It rejects the document penned by Palestinians in Israeli jails.
Abbas had set a Tuesday deadline for Hamas to embrace the manifesto on Palestinian statehood but delayed a showdown after what officials said were appeals by Arab leaders.
A referendum, with opinion polls suggesting most Palestinians support the document, would also be seen as a confidence vote on the Hamas government, whose election led the West and Israel to cut off funds to the Palestinian Authority.
