Abbas says Hamas trying to 'destroy dream of statehood'

[oberliner]

BETHLEHEM, West Bank - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Friday accused Gaza's Hamas rulers of trying to destroy the Palestinian dream of statehood, saying the Islamist group's violent takeover of the coastal strip last June "destroyed and tries to destroy our dreams, future and national aspirations".

He reiterated his demand that Hamas relinquish control of Gaza.

Abbas, who spoke while attending Christmas celebrations of Armenian Christians in biblical Bethlehem, Jesus' traditional birthplace, also denounced Israel's ongoing military strikes in Gaza as "brutal".

Fighting along the Israel-Gaza border has intensified in recent days, with Gaza militants firing rockets on Israeli border communities and Israeli pounding the coastal strip with air strikes. On Friday, Israel flattened a Hamas government building, signaling it's planning to intensify strikes.

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