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Abbas presses statehood referendumVote would implicitly recognize Israel's right to exist
YOUR E-MAIL ALERTSGAZA CITY (CNN) -- Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said Monday that he will call a referendum on Palestinian statehood that would implicitly recognize Israel's right to exist. He made the announcement after a meeting of the executive committee of the Palestinian Liberation Organization in the West Bank city of Ramallah. Abbas, on May 25, gave Hamas a 10-day deadline to accept a proposal that calls for Israelis and Palestinians to live side by side in separate states -- or he would call a referendum on the issue. Abbas told the PLO meeting that dialogue with Hamas has failed and he would take his call for a referendum directly to the Palestinian street. Hamas has been trying to pressure Abbas, a member of the rival Fatah party, to continue their negotiations past the 10-day deadline. Hamas, which assumed control of the parliament in March after winning elections in January, has called for Israel's destruction and does not support a referendum. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zhri said such a referendum would be illegal. Israel, the United States, and many other countries have called on Hamas to denounce terrorism and accept Israel's existence. The United States and European Union -- both of which consider Hamas a terrorist organization -- have halted payments to the Palestinian government, instead making contributions to Palestinians through non-governmental organizations. The international pressure that followed Hamas' election has hamstrung the territories. A representative for Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniya's office quickly said Hamas rejected the 10-day deadline. (Full story) Abbas said the border plan was drawn up by Palestinian prisoners from Fatah, Hamas and Islamic Jihad -- all being held in Israeli prisons. It calls for the areas captured by Israel in the 1967 war -- including the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem -- to make up the future Palestinian state. Abbas endorsed the plan as a way to end the crushing sanctions against the Palestinian administration and allow him to resume peace talks with Israel. Israel strikes GazaThe Israeli military on Monday launched an airstrike in northern Gaza, killing two militant Palestinians, Israeli military and Palestinian sources said. The two killed were identified by Palestinian security sources as Majdi Hamad and Imad Assaliya, both from the Popular Resistance Committee. Three other Palestinians were wounded when the Israeli missile hit a car in northern Gaza, Palestinian medical sources said. And in northern Gaza Monday, a Hamas militant died in an explosion at a house, Palestinian security sources said. The blast occurred in the Jebalya refugee camp, outside of Gaza City. A woman and children were wounded in the explosion, the sources said. The Israeli army said it was not involved in the Jebalya blast. Hamas, Fatah battleHamas' upset win in this year's parliamentary elections broke Fatah's longtime hold on power. But Fatah still dominates the Palestinian security forces, and the two factions have fought periodic clashes in the streets of Gaza since Hamas took power in March. On Sunday, five Palestinians died in gunbattles between Hamas and the Fatah faction led by Abbas, Palestinian security sources said. Three Palestinian bystanders died in a shootout between Hamas and Fatah gunmen in Gaza City, and a man and woman died when attackers fired at a car carrying Hamas militant Yasser Ghalban in the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis, the security sources said. Ghalban and his brother were critically wounded in the attack, the sources said. Olmert: Committed to talksIsraeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Sunday his country will hold talks with Abbas aimed at restarting peace negotiations. "Israel is committed to the road map [peace plan] and to the talks with Mahmoud Abbas," Olmert said at a joint news conference with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak after the two men held talks at Sharm El-Sheikh. Olmert did not say when talks with Abbas may take place. "I ask all Palestinians, Fatah and Hamas, that they have to solve all their problems and come back to negotiations for peace," said Mubarak. Egypt and Jordan are the only Arab countries that have established normalized relations with Israel. But Mubarak said he believes that if Israel and the Palestinians reach a final agreement, Arab nations would not object to establishing relations with Israel. "The cornerstone is for the Israelis and the Palestinians to find a solution, and then the Arab countries would follow," he said. CNN's Talal Aburahma contributed to this report. 
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