Palestinian president: Killing of Hamas leader intended to prolong Gaza war

The killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was intended to prolong the Gaza conflict, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told RIA agency in remarks published on Tuesday, adding he will discuss the crisis with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.

RIA, citing a diplomatic source, said that Abbas will come on the long-expected visit to Moscow on Aug. 12-14 for talks with Putin.

Haniyeh, the political leader of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, was assassinated in the Iranian capital, Tehran, last week in an attack that drew threats of revenge on Israel and fuelled concern that the conflict in Gaza was turning into a wider Middle East war.

Abbas said that he considers Haniyeh's assassination "a cowardly act and a dangerous development in Israeli politics."

"There is no doubt that the purpose of Mr. Haniyeh's assassination is to prolong the war and expand its scope," Abbas told Russia's state RIA news agency in an interview.

"It will have a negative impact on the ongoing negotiations to end the aggression and withdraw Israeli troops from Gaza," Abbas said in remarks published in Russian by the RIA agency and translated by Reuters.

Russia has condemned Haniyeh's killing and called on all parties to refrain from further destabilization of the region.

Abbas told RIA in the interview that he plans to discuss the peace process in the region with Putin.

"We constantly exchange opinions with the President of Russia, consult on all the most important issues in order to advance the peace process, as well as strengthen bilateral and regional relations," RIA cited Abbas as saying. "We will do this during our upcoming visit to Russia."

Abbas is also expected to visit Turkey, with Ankara saying last week they expect the Palestinian leader for talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Aug. 14-15.

Reuters