Prozion: Hamas and Likud denounce Annapolis

By SARAH EL DEEB, Associated Press Writer
Mon Nov 26, 2:28 PM ET



GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Leaders of the Islamic militant group Hamas called Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas a traitor Monday and vowed to reject any decisions made at the Mideast peace conference in the United States.

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In Jerusalem, meanwhile, more than 20,000 Israelis gathered at the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews can pray, to protest the conference. Many marched to a square near the residence of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert for a noisy demonstration.

Israeli opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu also denounced the meeting. "The Palestinians are not lifting a finger to stop terror or recognize Israel as a Jewish state," he told Channel 2 TV. "I see this summit as a continuation of one-sided concessions."

Coming as the Israeli military killed four Palestinians in the Gaza Strip in an airstrike and a ground clash, the angry comments on both sides showed that both Olmert and Abbas face stiff opposition at home in trying to achieve a peace agreement.

Hamas has been staging daily demonstrations in Gaza against the conference and Abbas, restating their rejection of the existence of a Jewish state in an Islamic Middle East.

"The land of Palestine ... is purely owned by the Palestinians," Hamas leader Mahmoud Zahar said in a speech, referring to the territory that includes Israel. "No person, group, government or generation has the right to give up one inch of it."

Speaking at a meeting of 2,000 activists from local militant groups, Zahar declared, "Anyone who stands in the face of resistance or fights it or cooperates with the (Israeli) occupation against it is a traitor" — a clear reference to Abbas and his dealings with Israel.