By Xinhua,
Gaza : A spokesman for the Islamic Hamas movement in Gaza confirmed on Tuesday that meetings were held in Gaza between Hamas leaders and French diplomats.
“We can not reveal the place and the date of the meetings but they are confirmed,” said Taher al-Noono, spokesman for Hamas government headed by deposed Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haneya.
Earlier on Monday, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said that France has made informal contacts with Hamas, adding that Hamas expressed to France its readiness to accept a Palestinian state on the territories occupied in 1967.
Kouchner said France was not engaged in formal negotiations with Hamas. “These are not relations, they are contacts. We must be able to talk if we want to play a role,” he said.
Al-Noono told the press that “there were meetings with French officials and discussions on the political situation, as well as the necessity of the international community’s respect of the results of the democratic process which took place in Palestine.”
“We also briefed them (the French diplomats) on the Israeli terror, including the blockade and the political conflict in the region.” al-Noono said.
He added that “We told them that the government has accepted the National Accordance Document which clearly talks about establishing a Palestinian statehood within the 1967 border.”
Europe, the United States and Israel have listed Hamas, which rules Gaza since last summer, among the world’s terrorist groups. The international community urged Hamas to recognize Israel and condemn violence.
“We accepted the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the territories occupied in 1967, but this doesn’t mean giving up any part of Palestine or recognizing Israel,” said al-Noono, adding “this is a clear position.”