Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said Wednesday after the swearing-in ceremony for his cabinet in Gaza that the Hamas government is prepared to give negotiations between Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) and Israel a chance.

"The problem is not the Palestinian side or its consent to negotiations, but that Israel does not honor commitments it already undertook in negotiations. If the Authority chairman, as the elected president, wants to get the negotiations moving, we have no objection to that. If what Abu Mazen presents to the people as a result of negotiations serves its interest, then we too will redefine our position," Haniyeh said.

The cabinet of 24 (including Haniyeh) was sworn in at a ceremony that took place simultaneously in Gaza and Ramallah by means of video conference. The 14 ministers from the West Bank and 10 from the Gaza Strip will not be able to attend cabinet meetings together because of the Israeli ban on traveling from one region to the other.

By Arnon Regular, Haaretz Correspondent, and AP

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