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Top Hamas official Mahmoud al-Zahar seen at his Gaza home in 2005. (Nir Kafri)
Last update - 05:16 10/11/2007
Top Hamas official: We'll seize West Bank if Israel withdraws
By Reuters
Tags: West Bank, Hamas, Gaza Strip 

The militant Islamic organization Hamas, which seized control of the Gaza Strip in June, would take over the West Bank if Israel pulled out of the territory, a senior Hamas leader said on Friday.

The comments by deposed Palestinian foreign minister Mahmoud al-Zahar contrasted with remarks by Ismail Haniyeh, who serves as prime minister of a Hamas-led government dismissed by Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

Haniyeh said earlier this week that Hamas had no intention of repeating its Gaza takeover in the West Bank, where Abbas' secular Fatah faction remains dominant.
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"Israel says the party in Ramallah [Fatah] serves Israel, and if Israel quits the West Bank, Hamas will take it over. And we say this is true," Zahar said at a rally for Hamas supporters in Jabalya refugee camp in northern Gaza.

Last month, a Hamas leader in Gaza had caused an uproar among Abbas' aides when he said Hamas activists would one day pray at Abbas' headquarters in the West Bank, as they had done in Gaza.

Hamas Islamists took over the Gaza Strip after routing forces loyal to the Western-backed Abbas. Israel and the United States are trying to bolster Abbas, who dismissed the Hamas-led government and formed his own cabinet in the West Bank.

Israel declared the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip an "enemy entity" and closed its borders with the coastal territory, allowing only humanitarian aid to enter.

"We say to those in the West Bank take a lesson from what happened in Gaza," Zahar said, an indirect reference to the fierce violence that led to Hamas' takeover of the coastal strip.

Israel has warned that Hamas would be poised to take over the territory were it to withdraw its forces.

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      1.   Democratically Elected Gov`t = Hamas 15:29  |  POP 09/11/07
      2.   OF COURSE THEY CAN!THERE MUCH STRONGER! 15:30  |  SAEED 09/11/07
      3.   Crazy, Loco , Mishugah, Majnun 15:41  |  Ethan 09/11/07
      4.   A Taliban state in the making 15:54  |  Brod 09/11/07
      5.   Hamas Desperate to Prevent Peace 15:56  |  dyinglikeflies 09/11/07
      6.   hamas seizing control in west bank 16:04  |  scanadu 09/11/07
      7.   You got it? Me neither. 16:07  |  S 09/11/07
      8.   Hamas threat and Annapolis. Case closed. 16:09  |  bat yam 09/11/07
      9.   Lost in translation? 16:10  |  Kelso 09/11/07
      10.   a new Propaganda from Isreal?? 16:14  |  Collond 09/11/07
      11.   control 16:15  |  Shmuelshachor 09/11/07
      12.   Better believe him.So what does Condi say to that? 16:21  |  Alan 09/11/07
      13.   Democratically elected Govt threatens to take over where eleceted 16:23  |  POP 09/11/07
      14.   And they should,since the quislings have gone from bad to worse! 16:25  |  lakshmi 09/11/07
      15.   HAMAS WARNING-A WAKEUP CALL:HOLYLAND MUST BE IN JEWISH HANDS))))) 16:37  |  VOICE of MOSHIACH))) 09/11/07
      16.   HAMAS WANTS ANAPOLIS TO FAIL.ARABS WANT NO PALESTATE. GOOD! 16:39  |  VOICE of MOSHIACH))) 09/11/07
      17.   It will work exactly the other way, Mr. Zahar..... 16:55  |  Swiss (Dino) 09/11/07
      18.   Anyway for Hamas... 16:56  |  Dutch Dirk 09/11/07
      19.   I would like to see the real translations of his comments. 17:02  |  Aaron 09/11/07
      20.   #4 Colland - Paris 17:06  |  * BEN JABO 09/11/07
      21.   After hamas declaration 17:08  |  KUTW 09/11/07
      22.   The word "good" does not exist in islamic world 17:08  |  Johnny 09/11/07
      23.   The word "righteous" is unknown in the islamic world 17:09  |  Johnny 09/11/07
      24.   Yet again we see the true face of islam 17:10  |  Johnny 09/11/07
      25.   iran is becoming a pain 17:20  |  goldman 09/11/07
      26.   Aaron, why dont you go to an islamic newspaper and read then? 17:25  |  Johnny 09/11/07
      27.   zohar take over of west bank 17:32  |  marcel 09/11/07
      28.   Mr. Dirk (16) 17:36  |  Joe Mommaski 09/11/07
      29.   three cheers for Hamas who are Israels best friend right now 17:38  |  zionist forever 09/11/07
      30.   Correction 17:39  |  Double Click 09/11/07
      31.   Duh! 17:48  |  W 09/11/07
      32.   forcing catch 22 17:57  |  78sfgh 09/11/07
      33.   #2 18:03  |  Jane 09/11/07
      34.   Hamas did take over West Bank 18:03  |  Jan Elshout 09/11/07
      35.   Hamas will take it either way 18:03  |  Mark Lincoln 09/11/07
      36.   Johny 18:06  |  Anne 09/11/07
      37.   Is there anyone out there who is surprised at the attitude of 18:09  |  Shuli Eitan 09/11/07
      38.   Hamas 18:18  |  Jacob 09/11/07
      39.   Hamas resisting independence again 18:18  |  ChanahS 09/11/07
      40.   Collond # 10 - it sure does concern Israel 18:22  |  ChanahS 09/11/07
      41.   POP # 11 Correction 18:27  |  Jeff Northridge 09/11/07
      42.   US/EU Highly DELIGHTED with TERRORIST Success of JewCleansed Gaza 18:38  |  Linda Rivera 09/11/07
      43.   #10 - yes of course, Zahar is really a Mossad agent - he he he 18:39  |  redmike 09/11/07
      44.   So predictable. Rice is a joke. 18:39  |  rob 09/11/07
      45.   #27 - do you really think anything is happening ? 18:51  |  redmike 09/11/07
      46.   LOL, He`s not joking either, intorducing a nightmare you`ll never 18:51  |  David P 09/11/07
      47.   Both Haniyeh and Zahar aim at the same goal 18:57  |  Tosefta 09/11/07
      48.   Hamas doesn`t give a damn about their own people! 19:04  |  MichaelF 09/11/07
      49.   Hamas is desperate 19:07  |  Esther 09/11/07
      50.   Iakshmi # 14 From Bad To Worse 19:07  |  Jeff Northridge 09/11/07
      51.   Zahar and Lieberman sitting in a tree.... 19:20  |  Awake 09/11/07
      52.   # 17 Swiss 19:23  |  Lynn 09/11/07
      53.   All the more reason to anex the West Bank 19:23  |  David G 09/11/07
      54.   lakshmi and quislings 19:26  |  Lynn 09/11/07
      55.   The "Bomb" 19:29  |  Chicago Arab 09/11/07
      56.   HAMAS SAYS IT THEMSELVES: ISRAEL IS ONLY FOR JEWS 19:37  |  don 09/11/07
      57.   ONLY SOLUTION: GAZA TO EGYPT; W.BANK PARTITION WITH JORDAN 20:18  |  G. Marcus 09/11/07
      58.   The horror 20:19  |  Colin Wright 09/11/07
      59.   Prepare for kassams on Tel Aviv 20:29  |  Israeli 09/11/07
      60.   Pals deserve each other 20:43  |  Nemesis 09/11/07
      61.   They Even Lie To Each Other 20:51  |  Bill Foonman 09/11/07
      62.   ONLY SOLUTION: GAZA UNDER EGYPT; PARTS OF W.BANK LINKED TO JORDAN 21:07  |  G. Marcus 09/11/07
      63.   David G, You Think Israel Will Accept That? 21:10  |  Bernie 09/11/07
      64.   Democratically elected - kadima 21:15  |  MOM 09/11/07
      65.   US/EU Goal: Islamic CONQUEST of ISRAEL & Jewish Annihilation 22:17  |  Linda Rivera 09/11/07
      66.   West Bankistan. 2008 22:23  |  Stephen. 09/11/07
      67.   The basic error in the Rice-Olmert approach 22:38  |  Tosefta 09/11/07
      68.   I believe in the one state solution.. 22:44  |  Nemesis 09/11/07
      69.   Chicago Arab # 40 22:56  |  ChanahS 09/11/07
      70.   Hamas An ILLUSION/Pal DREAM That Has Become A NIGHTMARE. 23:07  |  Proud Pal Defender 09/11/07
      71.   #46 - you are right! 23:13  |  redmike 09/11/07