<center>Abbas threatened with aid being stopped if he signs an agreement with Hamas</center>

AMMAN -- The Jordanian al-Ra'i newspaper revealed on Friday that the US administration has sent the PA in Ramallah a message that any agreement signed with Hamas without the latter agreeing to the Quartet conditions would expose the PA to punitive measures, including the cutting off of financial aid to the PA.

The paper said that Washington told Abbas that excluding the Quartet's conditions from the agreement means succumbing to Hamas. The paper also said that the US-Egyptian relations stand to be strained because of latter's support for a Palestinian national reconciliation without reference to the Quartet's conditions.

The paper also said that the Israeli foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman told the US representative at the United Nations, Suzan Rice, that Israel will not agree to a Palestinian government that includes anyone from Hamas.

Al-Quds newspaper revealed a few days ago that US threats were behind the Egyptians last minute change of the text of the agreement.