Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas attends a meeting with the Palestinian Liberation Organization's (PLO) central council in the West Bank City of Ramallah April 26, 2014. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The unity pact between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the militant group Hamas dealt a sharp punch to U.S.-driven peace negotiations with Israel, but the Americans insisted it was not a fatal blow to the struggling talks.
Washington was stunned by the deal announced on Wednesday between Fatah, the faction that leads the West Bank, and Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip and is viewed as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union and Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu immediately suspended participation in the peace process brokered by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.
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