Netanyahu To Abbas: Choose Hamas Or Peace

In his first comment on a deal between rival Palestinian groups Hamas and Fatah, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that whoever chooses Hamas does not want peace.



Netanyahu said that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has to choose between making peace with Israel and making peace with Hamas, describing the Islamist movement as a "terrorist" organization that wants to destroy Israel.



He was "ed by Israeli TV as adding that as the Palestinians and the Israelis talk about an extension of a peace negotiations deadline, Abbas had chosen Hamas, not peace with Israel.



Earlier Wednesday, Hamas and Fatah hammered out a reconciliation deal in the Gaza Strip, bringing to an end a rift that persisted between the two Palestinian movements since 2007.



Commenting on the deal, Israeli Economy Minister Naftali Bennett said by signing the reconciliation deal, the Palestinian Authority had turned into a terrorist organization.



By Alaa Rimawi



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