Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Denisov told Interfax, "No personal meetings with Hamas officials are being planned either in Moscow or in the Palestinian territories." Moscow has said it knows nothing of a supposed invitation to a Hamas delegation led by Syrian-based Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal.
Hamas legislator Khalil al-Haya told media about the alleged invitation a day after rival Fatah faction leader and Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who called Abbas "the legitimate leader" of the PA.