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Furious protesters demand Abbas quit
Three also wounded in Gaza gunbattle
Friday, January 27, 2006; Posted: 12:08 p.m. EST (17:08 GMT)
GAZA CITY (CNN) -- A mob of up to 2,000 furious Fatah supporters took to the streets Friday, burning cars, firing guns and demanding the resignation of Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas after their party's election trouncing by the militant group Hamas.
Abbas, the Palestinian Authority president, was in the West Bank, where he called on Hamas to form a new government after its election landslide snatched power from Fatah's ruling old guard this week.
Protesters swarmed around Abbas' home in Gaza City, shooting guns in the air and accusing him of being a "collaborator" with Israel. (Watch the flames and hear the gunfire -- :40)
The crowd moved to nearby Palestinian legislative buildings, where protesters set a van on fire and scaled walls, trying to force their way into the compound. Demonstrators far outnumbered uniformed police on the scene.
Earlier, Abbas made a public request to Hamas leaders.
"I would ask the party that won the most votes in parliamentary elections to form the next government," Abbas said. "Until now, we haven't asked anyone to form the government. We are carrying on with contact with all factions, and of course we will ask the party that won the majority to form the government." (Watch how Hamas' victory affects Americans -- 2:50)
Post-election tensions also sparked fighting Friday in the Gaza town of Khan Yunis, with three people wounded in a gunbattle between supporters of Fatah and Hamas, Palestinian security authorities said.
There also were scuffles Thursday between the groups' backers in the West Bank town of Ramallah, seat of the Palestinian government.
Hamas' victory in Wednesday's election drove the Mideast peace process into uncharted territory. (Watch struggle from making bombs to creating jobs -- 2:39)
Abbas -- a co-founder of Fatah -- urged Hamas to keep peace negotiations moving forward, while Israeli and U.S. leaders indicated that little progress was possible until Hamas denounced violence and disarmed.
The changing of the Palestinian guard represents a stark shift in ideologies: Abbas has long been a conduit of the White House-backed road map to Middle East peace, including the so-called two-state solution proposing a Palestinian state alongside Israel. Hamas, however, has called for Israel's destruction, and the United States, Israel and the European Union considers it a terrorist organization. (A Hamas explainer)
Abbas did not appear to abandon hope that the peace process could move forward as long as the fundamentalist Islamic group can earn "the respect and confidence of the international community."
"Together, we will work to achieve the dream for which our martyrs have fallen," Abbas said. "It is a dream of setting up a democratic state based on our national unity, based on democracy, based on political pluralism and based on maintaining equality among the people, equality between men and women, according to our declaration of independence."
It will be a difficult challenge for a region that has been wracked with violence for decades, but Hamas leaders already have indicated that they are willing -- at the very least -- to honor a cease-fire with Israel.
About 1.073 million Palestinians voted, a turnout of 77 percent of registered voters, said Hana Naser of the Central Election Commission. (The reaction to the election)
An exit poll Wednesday indicated Hamas would do well, likely blocking Abbas' Fatah from maintaining its majority in the 132-seat Palestinian Legislative Council.
But Hamas' satisfaction transformed to glee over the next day as Naser announced Thursday that Hamas not only blocked a Fatah majority but also won the majority itself, taking 76 seats in parliament. (How the power breaks down)
Fatah, which has been in power for about 40 years, won 43 seats, and a handful of fringe parties and independent candidates won the remaining 13, Naser said.
As the reality of Hamas' win set in, American and Israeli leaders -- including hard-liner Benjamin Netanyahu, who is running for Israeli prime minister -- began sharing their concerns.
Netanyahu said the Hamas victory is "bad news no matter how they dress it up" and likened the militant group to Iran, whose president also has called for the destruction of Israel. (Watch Netanyahu talk about what it means for Israel -- 7:23)
The former prime minister and leader of Israel's Likud party added that for Israel to discuss peace seriously with Palestinians, Hamas would have to change its philosophy drastically.
Bush: Hamas must renounce terrorism
President Bush -- whose Middle East policy touts support for emerging democracies -- also said Thursday he would not deal with Hamas unless it renounced terrorism. (Watch Bush face tough questioning -- 5:37)
"I don't see how you can be a partner in peace if you advocate the destruction of a country as part of your platform," Bush said. "We're interested in peace."
Many in the Palestinian government already have given up their posts, with Abbas accepting the resignation of Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei and the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority Cabinet also resigning, said Fatah lawmaker Saeb Erakat.
The resignations prompted Bush to urge Abbas to remain at the helm.
"We would hope [Abbas] would stay in office and work to move the process forward," Bush said.
The Israeli Cabinet released a statement afterward saying, "The state of Israel will not negotiate with a Palestinian administration if its members include an armed terrorist organization that calls for the destruction of the state of Israel; in any case, Israel will continue to fight terrorism with a heavy hand, everywhere." |
