Israel flays US on 'weak' reaction to Fatah, Hamas unity deal

Israel has criticised America's "weak" reaction to the unity deal reached between rival Palestinian factions, Fatah and Hamas and demanded a clearer and more resolute response, a media report here said.
"Jerusalem has made it clear to the Americans that it is disappointed with their response and has asked that they take a sharper, clearer tack, as they did when Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas threatened to disband the PA," a senior Israeli official involved in the dialogue with Washington told Israeli daily Ha'aretz.
Hamas and Fatah on Wednesday announced that they have reached an agreement to end their differences and form a Palestinian unity government.

The historic reconciliation deal inked by rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah includes working towards a two-state solution that recognises Israel's existence.
Meanwhile, the Israeli security cabinet that decided to suspend peace talks with the Palestinians after marathon talks also reportedly dealt with the international response to the unity agreement.
The quoted senior official reportedly said that the ministers were in full agreement that the American response was "insufficient, weak, merely for show and didn't include enough exclamation marks."

US State Department spokeswoman Jennifer Psaki had called the Palestinian unity deal "troubling" and said the US was "disappointed" by it. She had also said that Washington would ask the Palestinians to provide clarifications.

Contrary to this mild stance, the State department had issued a public warning to Abbas when he threatened to disband the PA saying that such a move would have serious implications for US relations with the Palestinians.
"We expect that the American statement be much more decisive and determined," the senior Israeli official was quoted by Ha'aretz as saying.
"The Americans need to make it clear to Abbas that this is a red line. He just can't associate with Hamas. We don't accept that the Americans are talking about the policy of the unity government once it is formed, and are ignoring the fact that this is an alliance with Hamas. The Americans need to tell Abbas that he allied himself with a terrorist group and that they cannot accept this," he emphasised.