Hamas in coalition talks with militants

In talks with one of the factions, Hamas again signalled its readiness for a long-term truce if Israel withdraws from lands it occupied in the 1967 war. But the head of Israel’s Shin Bet internal security service,Yuval Diskin, said a truce alone would be unacceptable. Diskin called a Hamas-run state a long-term “strategic threat”.

With an Israeli helicopter gunship circling overhead, a Hamas delegation huddled with leaders of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a group involved in a more than 5-year Palestinian uprising.

After the meeting, a top PFLP leader, Rabah Muhana, hinted the group would agree to join a Hamas-led government, calling the outcome of the talks “positive”.

But it was unclear whether Hamas, which has observed a ceasefire since last year, would succeed in bringing all militant groups on board. Islamic Jihad, whose West Bank commander was killed by Israel, was expected to turn down Hamas’ offer to join the government.