Efforts to form a Palestinian government acceptable to the West have gone «back to zero,» Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Saturday. Abbas' remarks came a day after Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh from the Hamas group declared that he would not lead a coalition that recognizes Israel. The Palestinian president's Fatah Party and Hamas had agreed earlier this month in principle to form a national unity government, having made a deal that said the government would seek to establish a Palestinian state alongside Israel, which implies recognition. On Thursday Abbas, addressed the United Nations saying that a national unity government would recognize the Jewish state. He told journalists in Cairo Saturday, following talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, that «backtracking took place» on the negotiations. «Sadly, we are back to zero,» he said. The «backtracking» weakened Abbas' position at the U.N., he said, explaining his failure to obtain a commitment for the relaunching of the peace process. «The United States and European countries didn't see in any of such situations what help build a national unity government,» Abbas said of his appearance and meetings at the U.N., the Associated Press reported.
