Senior Hamas leader and former Palestinian prime minister Ismail Haniya has called on Arab states to boycott a US-sponsored Middle East peace meeting due to be held next month.
"We call on our Arab brothers, particularly the Saudi Arabian kingdom and Egypt, to reconsider any decision to participate in this conference," he said in an interview published on Saturday in Palestine magazine.
"The Palestinians did not build much hope on the previous Oslo agreements," Haniya stressed. "We do not put the slightest hope in this conference," he added, speaking out against "any normalization" of relations with Israel.
On Friday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said he expected at least 36 countries to attend, including 12 Arab states, three islamic nations, the permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and the G-8. "We hope that the number will increase to 40 states," Abbas was quoted as telling Palestinian dignitaries from Jerusalem on Friday, during a meal marking the end of the day's dawn-to-dusk fast of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
The comments were carried by the Palestinian news agency WAFA and confirmed by participants.
