Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas swore in the new consensus government on Monday, representing a coalition between Fatah and Hamas. Hamas officials said a last-minute dispute over the position of the minister of prisoner affairs had been resolved, though they didn’t report the specifics. Fatah and Hamas’ decision to form a unified government froze U.S.-brokered peace talks, as the U.S. considers Hamas a terrorist organization. Secretary of State John Kerry “expressed concern about Hamas’s role in any such government” in a statement released by the State Department. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netnayahu called on the international community “not to rush to recognize a Palestinian government which has Hamas as part of it and which is dependent on Hamas.” Abbas claims “Israel wants to punish us for agreeing with Hamas on this government.”
