Hamas would consider any referendum called by Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas on the fate of the Hamas cabinet a coup d'etat, a senior official of the Islamic movement said on Wednesday.

"We reject making the referendum like a bogeyman to resort
to in such situations ... President Mahmoud Abbas has powers, yes and he can exercise his powers within the legal limits," Palestinian Interior Minister Saeed Seyam told a news conference in Cairo, his final stop in a tour that included Syria and Iran.

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"But the situation here is not about powers... The referendum in itself would be a coup against the legitimacy this government enjoyed [through January elections]," he said.

Abbas, who heads the secular nationalist movement Fatah,
said on Tuesday he had to make a decision soon on the future of the Hamas government and that he might seek approval for any move in a referendum.

Abbas also promoted the idea of a cabinet of technocrats as a way of easing Western sanctions on the impoverished Palestinian territories, but he pledged not to force it on Hamas, and the ruling party was initially cool to the idea.

PA spokesman Ghazi Hamed said on Wednesday, however, that Hamas is considering acceding to Abbas' plan to form a cabinet of technocrats to ease international sanctions.

Hamed said the next government would be composed of independent professionals, rather than politicians, recognized both nationally and internationally.

Hamed told the Palestinian news agency Ma'an Wednesday that Arab mediators are currently in the process of formulating an agreement between Hamas and Fatah on the possible new government.

The London-based Arabic language newspaper Al Hayat on Wednesday reported that Egyptian Intelligence Chief Omar Suleiman suggested to Hamas' political bureau chief Khaled Meshal to establish a unity government made up of Hamas and Fatah representatives alongside independent professionals.

According to the report, the term of this unity government would be restricted to one year. In addition, the proposal included to end Abbas' chairmanship term next year, instead of the original 2009 deadline.

These two moves would then allow holding early elections for both parliament and PA chairmanship by next year.

Meshal has not yet responded to the proposal.

Hamed confirmed Suleiman advised Meshal to establish, through Palestinian parliamentary proceedings, an independent government under Hamas jurisdiction.

Salah Bardaweel, spokesman for the Hamas bloc in parliament, also confirmed reports of an Egyptian initiative to establish a unity government and to release abducted Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit. He said he hoped the initiative would see light in coming days.

Abbas addressed reporters for more than an hour at his headquarters in the West Bank city of Ramallah Tuesday evening. In his strongest endorsement yet of the technocrat idea, he said it should be "considered seriously" as a way out of the current deadlock.

Abbas has hinted he would sack the government and said talks on forming a unity coalition with the Hamas were dead over its refusal to soften its stance toward Israel.

The escalating power struggle has sparked fierce internal fighting this month between Hamas and Abbas's Fatah faction that has killed 18 people, sparking fears of civil war.

"In the near future we need to reach options that will allow us to get out of this crisis as soon as possible," said Abbas. "It is impossible to remain in this situation."

Abbas did not explicitly say what those options were but his aides have said he might call fresh elections, appoint an emergency government or hold a referendum to let the Palestinian people decide what to do.

Asked if he would call a referendum, Abbas said, "If there is no constitutional text on an issue I seek, I will go to the people and hold a referendum on that issue."

While the Palestinian basic law, which functions as a constitution, allows the president to sack the government, it does not make any mention of other alternatives such as calling early elections.

Hamas has accused Fatah of trying to topple the government and warned of more internal violence if Abbas makes good on the threats. The Islamists stunned Fatah by winning parliamentary elections in January.

That prompted the West to cut off critical official aid over Hamas' refusal to recognise Israel and renounce violence, deepening an economic crisis in Gaza and the West Bank.

"A government that is incapable of lifting the siege is worthless," Abbas added, referring to the Western sanctions and Israeli restrictions on freedom of movement and goods within the Palestinian territories.

"If I cannot solve the people's problems, I am worthless," said Abbas.