Hamas spurns Abbas peace appeal

Ramallah: A new parliament dominated by Hamas was sworn in on Saturday, with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas asking the group to form the next government but also imploring them to honour existing peace deals and take the path of negotiation.

Hamas leaders immediately rejected Abbas's calls, but signalled a willingness to compromise.

Hooked up via video conferencing because Israel wouldn't allow them to travel between the two territories, the new lawmakers in the West Bank and Gaza Strip took their oath of office collectively.

Abbas then urged the new legislature, 74 of whose 132 seats now belong to Hamas, not to endanger diplomatic gains worked out over years of painstaking talks with Israel and the international community.

"We, as a presidency and a government, will continue our commitment to the negotiation process as the sole political, pragmatic and strategic choice through which we reap the fruit of our struggle and sacrifices over the long decades," he said.

He reminded the new legislators "of the need to respect all signed agreements," including the Oslo Accords of the 1990s.

For now, Hamas remains committed to Israel's destruction, and a leading Hamas legislator, Mushir Al Masri, said after Abbas's speech that negotiations with Israel are "not on our agenda".

However, both Abbas and Esmail Haniya, Hamas's choice for prime minister, said they would try to resolve their deep differences through dialogue.

Hamas legislator Abdul Aziz Duaik, a geography professor from the West Bank, was elected Speaker of the new parliament.