Abbas to quit if peace is blocked

London: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas says he will resign if the newly elected ruling party, Hamas prevents him from advancing the peace process.

"We could reach a point where I cannot perform my duty. Then I will not continue sitting in this place, against and in spite of my convictions," Abbas said in an interview with British channel ITV.

The diplomatic Middle East quartet behind the roadmap to peace has urged Hamas to not only renounce violence but also accept Israel's right to exist.

Abbas said he had explained to Hamas leaders that "Hamas has to take (a) place between their policy and our (Fatah's) policies which means that they should be committed to all the commitments we made before, the most prominent of which are (the 1993) Oslo (accords) of course and the road map."

Asked if he would resign if Hamas renounced the policies for peace which have already been agreed upon Abbas said, "I would say that is my conviction that the presidential chair is not a goal and is not an end - rather it's a means to implement a mission and to achieve something to my people.

"If I can achieve this for the people then the chair is important. Otherwise the chair for me becomes of no importance." said Abbas, ?From the beginning, I said ... that if I fail I will resign," he added.