(Jerusalem Post) Khaled Abu Toameh - Hamas and Egypt's banned Muslim Brotherhood, which have historical ties, have begun coordinating their moves ahead of next month's Palestinian parliamentary elections, PA security officials said on Monday. Meanwhile, Said Siam, a senior Hamas official in the Gaza Strip, announced on Monday that his movement was planning to form the new PA cabinet after it wins a majority of seats in parliament. One of the Hamas candidates for the parliamentary elections, Miriam Farhat, met in Cairo over the weekend with Mahdi Akef, the spiritual leader of the Muslim Brotherhood. Farhat emerged as the "mother of martyrs" after she appeared on a Hamas videotape encouraging her 17-year-old son, Muhammad, to participate in a suicide mission. Farhat said that Hamas's decision to participate in the parliamentary elections does not mean that the Islamic movement has abandoned the "military option." Akef, who held a warm reception for her, declared that the "resistance was the only way to end the Israeli presence in Palestine." He added: "We welcome the Jews in Palestine only as individuals, but we don't agree to their presence there as a state."
2005-12-23 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive