Hamas: We do not support Abbas's statehood bid

[toomuchtime_]

Hamas denied Thursday that its prime minister, Ismail Haniyeh, had expressed support for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas's effort to upgrade the status of a Palestinian state to non-member.

Supporting Abbas's statehood bid would have meant that Hamas is willing to accept a Palestinian state "only" within the pre-1967 lines.

The denial came shortly after Abbas's office announced that he had received a phone call from Haniyeh and top Hamas official Ahmed Bahr, who expressed their support for the statehood bid.

Abbas's office said that Islamic Jihad leader Mohamed Hindi also phoned the PA president to voice his backing for the statehood bid.

Hamas: We do not support Abbas's statehood... JPost - Middle East