Hamas opposes Palestinian UN bid, warns of consequences

WireUpdate:  GAZA CITY (BNO NEWS) -- The Palestinian militant group Hamas on Wednesday said it does not support the Palestinian statehood bid at the United Nations (UN) and warned of its consequences, the Palestine News Network (PNN) reported.

A spokesman for the movement, Salah al-Bardawil, said that President Mahmoud Abbas' decision to go to the UN is a tactical move, part of a negotiation process that is 'not based on principles.' He added that Hamas and other Palestinian resistance factions it leads would therefore not support the decision.

Bardawil also told a seminar in Gaza City that if the Palestinian state is ratified within the 1967 borders, the Palestinian resistance would not be able to shoot a single bullet 'against the Israeli occupation,' according to PNN.

On Tuesday, the Fatah Revolutionary Council called for the Palestinian support of the UN bid and urged people to go out and demonstrate in city centers. Fatah said the demonstrations will increase until September 23, when President Abbas will speak to the UN General Assembly.

Last week, the United States said it will veto any Palestinian bid to seek a full United Nations membership and warned that any action at the United Nations will only increase tensions in the region. The United States is one of the permanent members of the UN Security Council.

The U.S. comments came a day after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told U.S. officials that the Palestinian bid does not contradict the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, but will end the deadlock that resulted from "Israeli intransigence."

Abbas also said that Palestine is willing to return to negotiations if Israel accepts the terms of reference to the peace process, the two-state solution on the 1967 borders and stops settlements in the Palestinian Territory, according to the Palestine News and Information Agency.

Last year, Israel and the Palestinian Authority stalled the peace negotiations, which were supported by the United States and the United Nations, after the Jewish nation refused to extend a moratorium on settlement building in the occupied Palestinian territory in September.

In response, President Abbas broke off direct talks as recommended by Hamas, which has been designated as a terrorist organization by the European Union and countries such as the United States and Israel. Israel has since resumed settlement construction even though they have been labeled as a violation of international law by the international community.

Palestine has demanded a stop to settlement construction in the disputed East Jerusalem and West Bank area as a key element for continuing peace talks, aimed at reaching a two-state solution based on the 1967 Green Line. However, Israeli authorities have rejected the Palestinian solution based on the 1967 borders as that measure would leave a large population of Israelis in Judea and Samaria outside Israel's borders.

About 120 out of 193 countries have currently recognized the State of Palestine and those are seen as possible supporters if the UN votes on the issue. If the UN Security Council resolution to recognize Palestine is approved, Palestine would become the 194th member of the United Nations.