Palestinian Foreign Minister and Hamas leader Mahmoud al-Zahar said on Sunday he had met a European foreign minister during a three-week tour of Arab countries, but declined to name the minister.
Such a meeting would be a major coup for the Palestinian Authority, facing economic meltdown after Western countries froze aid and cut most diplomatic contacts since the Hamas took control of the government in March.
"I have met with a European consul during a ceremony and we met with a foreign minister of a European country. There were contacts with many European parties," Zahar said, speaking to reporters in Gaza. Zahar declined to name the officials or say where the meeting took place, saying that could jeopardise tenuous relationships he was trying to build. An official from Zahar's office said the minister was from the European Union.
A European diplomatic source in Jerusalem cast doubt on the account, saying it was unlikely such a meeting took place.
The European Union, along with the United States, cut direct aid to the government to try to force Hamas to recognise the Jewish state and abide by interim peace deals with Israel.
European Union foreign ministers also decided in April that there would be no political contact with Hamas, although technical contacts would be allowed when necessary. Hamas remains sworn to Israel's destruction, although it has largely abided by a truce for over a year.
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