Abbas to open dialogue with Hamas leaders

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Saturday night that he would open a dialogue with Hamas leaders within the week in a bid to end violence that has rocked the Gaza Strip. "There is a crisis. We have to look for a solution," he told reporters at a news conference on the fringe of the World Economic Forum at this Egyptian Red Sea resort. "A dialogue will be opened within the next four or five days." The Palestinian leader also said that there was no path forward for his people but to seek peace with Israel. "I have no other option than to seek the road of peace. ...Our hands will remain extended in peace. Peace is the only option," Abbas said. The Palestinian leader said he would tell officials he was to meet on Sunday that he remains opposed to unilateral Israeli actions to separate itself from the Palestinians. "The only basis for both sides is the road map," he said.