Abbas Calls for Elections, Angering Hamas

JERUSALEM — A showdown loomed last night between the main Palestinian Arab factions as the Fatah leader, Mahmoud Abbas, prepared to call a snap election in an attempt to end months of deadlock with Hamas.

It prompted a furious reaction from Prime Minister Haniyeh of Hamas, who described an early election as an attempt to "stab us in the back."

Tension mounted in Gaza as the Hamas interior minister, Said Siam, survived what witnesses described as an assassination attempt when gunmen fired on his convoy.

Mr. Abbas, who is the president of the Palestinian Authority, discussed the highly sensitive idea of an early election when he met with the executive committee of the Fatah-controlled Palestine Liberation Organization.

The committee gave its backing to the idea, though the move will almost certainly spark unrest, as Hamas would likely regard it as an attempt to rob the Islamist movement of its election victory last January.

With Hamas still popular among the Palestinian Arabs, it is by no means certain that the movement would lose a snap election. That Mr. Abbas is seriously considering such an extreme measure, and one that is so likely to spark violence, reflects the depth of the crisis in the West Bank and Gaza.

Normal government and administration effectively ground to a halt there following the international financial boycott by Israel, America, and Europe in response to the Hamas election victory.

While Mr. Abbas has yet to publicly announce a snap election, some of his closest political allies have begun floating the idea.

A Palestinian Arab legislator linked to Abbas, Nabil Amr, said he expected the Fatah leader to make the announcement when he delivers a keynote speech on Saturday. "Every country which suffers such a crisis resorts to the ballot box," Mr. Amr said. "Any choice, even if it is difficult, will be easier than the current situation." However, Hamas reacted furiously to the possibility of a snap election, saying it would represent "an attempted coup." Speaking during an official visit to Iran, one of Hamas's most generous backers, Mr. Haniyeh, said an early election would be a clear violation of the Palestinian Arab constitution. "One should not violate the affairs of the Palestinian nation with various plans," he said. "Since the beginning of taking office, we have felt that some bodies have been stabbing us in the back." Mr. Haniyeh was backed by members of Hamas back home in Gaza.