From the news.com.au network by AFP correspondents in Damascus, Syria, February 17, 2006 ...
SENIOR Hamas official Mussa Abu Marzuk called today for the United States to remove the Palestinian Islamist movement from its list of terrorist organisations following last month's election victory.
"Hamas was put on the list of terrorist organisations because of its policies which are opposed to those to the United States in the region," said Abu Marzuk, a member of the movement's political bureau. "This is an unjustifiable reason because Hamas has a strong base on the Palestinian street and won a clear victory in the elections" in the Palestinian territories on January 15, he said.
..."Hamas carries out operations in the occupied territories. It has not expanded its operations outside of Palestine," said Abu Marzuk, while noting that he had been jailed in the United States in 1995.
The movement's leaders have rejected calls for the group to disarm before it can form a Palestinian government, saying they won a solid mandate from the Palestinian people and will not accept any preconditions.
Hamas, which maintains an armed wing and calls for the destruction of the state of Israel, has spearheaded a campaign of deadly attacks against the Jewish state.
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