Envoys of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas held secret talks with the exiled leader of 'Hamas' in Syria for the past two weeks, and made progress toward forming a joint government, Abbas aides and an official close to the talks said Saturday. The envoys were heading to Damascus on Saturday for another round of talks, and Abbas is to visit the Syrian capital later this month. If a coalition agreement is reached, Abbas would meet in Damascus with Hamas leader, Khaled Mashaal, the officials said on condition of anonymity, according to a report of the Associated Press. Abbas left for Jordan on Saturday to brief Jordan's King Abdullah II on the developments. On Sunday, he is to be back in the West Bank, to meet with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is touring the Middle East.
