Abbas Wants Israel Accord Changes, Hamas Talks

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said he wants to amend an "unfair" 1994 agreement on economic ties with Israel, as he returned from New York on Saturday, pledging also to resume talks with Hamas.

"We want to amend the Paris economic agreement between the PLO and Israel because it is not fair," Abbas told reporters en route to Amman, Jordan from the U.N. General Assembly, where he applied for Palestinian U.N. membership.

"It (the agreement) contains restrictions that affect the Palestinian economy and hinder its development. The Paris agreement does not allow Palestinians to promote their economy."

Abbas was referring to the Protocol on Economic Relations signed in Paris in 1994 between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization.

He went on to say that he was committed to opening the "next step in a comprehensive dialogue" with Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist movement in Gaza which opposed his bid for U.N. membership.

"Some Hamas officials opposed the (U.N.) approach by the Palestinian leadership and had reservations, but overall, I received support among leaders" from the movement, said Abbas.

"We will discuss reconciliation with Hamas but also the prospects of the Palestinian movement," he said.