BAIT-UL-MOQADDAS The founder of Islamic Hamas group, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, described the Palestinian Authority on Sunday as an Israeli tool and said Hamas would continue to attack Israeli targets. The Islamic Resistance Movement would cooperate with the Palestinian Authority of President Yasser Arafat only if it was allowed to resist Israeli occupation, he said. The authority now is another form of (occupation)...it is an authority within the authority of the occupation (Israel) which controls our people and country, Yassin said in an interview with Qatar's Al-Jazira satellite television.

The Palestinian Authority, through security cooperation with Israel, wants to mar the image of the movement and to destroy its fighters. Therefore we reject this approach which only serves Israeli interests. Yassin said Hamas had chosen to avoid confrontation with the Palestinian Authority but was continuing its struggle against Israel. He said Arafat's peace accords with Israel were capitulation deals which did not give the Palestinian Authority full control over its land or people.

The Palestinian Authority is implementing the dictates of the United States and Israel in the agreement. It has arrested around 300 from our fighters who resist occupation, he said. Yassin said his group's conditions for reconciliation with the Palestinian Authority included the release of all Hamas prisoners from Palestinian jails, an end to such arrests and freedom for Hamas to carry out attacks against Israel. (Reuter)