Hamas and Fatah sign reconciliation agreement

[Gerald]

PARIS — A day after the main Palestinian factions signed a unity agreement in Cairo, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton strikingly refused on Thursday to rule out further negotiations with a Palestinian side that included Hamas, the militant Islamic group that runs Gaza and is defined by many in the West as a terrorist organization. But she reiterated the Obama administration’s call for Hamas to accept basic conditions that included renouncing violence and recognizing Israel’s right to exist.

Mrs. Clinton spoke in Rome before a meeting on Libya as the leading protagonists in the Middle East conflict set out elsewhere to pursue their rival campaigns for sympathy and support on a larger stage, seeking European backing for their conflicting visions of peace and Palestinian statehood.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/06/wo...ideast.html?hp

Note: Update record, May 5, 2011