Shas party chairman and Industry Trade and Labor Minister Eli Yishai warned Monday, "We will not lend our hand to any attempt to hand over territory to Hamas…. Giving land to [Palestinian Authority and Fatah Chairman] Abu Mazen essentially means giving it to Hamas, as happened in Gaza. It's obvious that if Abu Mazen [Mahmoud Abbas] can't make peace amidst his own people, how can he make peace with us?"
His statements are the latest in a series of warnings to the Olmert administration that its days are numbered. If Shas pulls out of the government, the Kadima-Labor-Pensioners coalition has virtually no chance of maintaining a majority.
Shas previously has said that it would quit if senior Israeli and PA levels would discuss dividing Jerusalem. Abbas has insisted that the fate of the capital has been on the negotiating table, but the government has denied the claim.