January 26, 2006
The militant Islamist group Hamas will not abandon its quest to destroy Israel, a Hamas senior member has said. “The Europeans and the Americans are telling Hamas to choose between weapons and Parliament. We say we will pursue both weapons and Parliament, and that there is no contradiction between the two of them”, Hamas candidate Ismail Haniya said after casting his vote in Palestinian Authority legislative elections on Wednesday. According to unconfirmed results, Hamas has won around half of the 132 seats in the Palestinian legislative assembly. Haniya added that his organization would "not change a single word of its covenant” which calls for the destruction of Israel. Western countries have said they would reassess their relations with the Palestinian Authority if it includes Hamas in its next government.
