Gaza City, Aug 20: Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmud Abbas condemned the "terrible" bus bombing in Jerusalem as he called off planned talks with a hardline faction which claimed responsibility for yesterday's attack. "I strongly condemn this act in Jerusalem," Abbas told reporters here.
"It is a terrible act against the Israeli civilians and this is not helping the interests of the Palestinian people."
Abbas said he had ordered his security minister Mohammed Dahlan to open an inquiry into the incident.
Abbas was speaking in Gaza where he was due to have held talks Wednesday morning with leaders from Hamas which claimed to have carried out the bombing. Islamic Jihad also claimed the Jerusalem attack.
But Ismail Haniya, a Hamas spokesman, said that Abbas had called off the talks, where he was expected to have sought to shore up a three-month truce called by militant groups.
Abbas was holding talks with Islamic Jihad leaders when the blast went off shortly after 9:00 pm (0230 IST, Wednesday). Senior Islamic Jihad figure Mohammed al-Hindi told that his organisation had affirmed its commitment to the truce during the talks with Abbas.
A statement issued later by the Palestinian leadership, which includes the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, also condemned the attack.
Bureau Report