Rice to Press for Isolation of Hamas-led Government

[shugah]

Rice to Press for Isolation of Hamas-led Government

Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will press U.S. allies today in London to deprive the incoming Hamas-led Palestinian government of financial support unless it abandons terrorism and accepts the existence of Israel.

The U.S., reacting to the setback to its Middle East policy posed by the surprise victory of Hamas in parliamentary elections Jan. 25, is seeking to build a consensus on withholding aid. European Union foreign ministers, meeting in Brussels today, said Hamas deserves time to embrace peace before a decision is made to cut off aid.

``The United States is not prepared to fund an organization that advocates the destruction of Israel, that advocates violence,'' Rice said while traveling to London.

Rice, who arrived late yesterday in the U.K., today plans to review the Palestinian elections with representatives of the United Nations, European Union and Russia. That group, known as the Quartet, has been working on negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis intended to lead to a peace agreement.

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