P.A. official says Shalit deal suspicious

JERUSALEM, Oct. 14 (UPI) -- The Palestinian Authority is accusing Hamas of diverting attention from the P.A. president as he bids for international recognition of a Palestinian state.

Authority Foreign Minister Riad al-Malki said Friday the timing of the Israel-Hamas prisoner exchange for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit this week was "suspicious," The Jerusalem Post reported.

"It seems as though Hamas decided to carry it out specifically now to draw attention away from Abu Mazen [Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas] and his speech at the U.N., which sought international recognition of a Palestinian state," al-Malki said.

Most analysts agree the deal will boost Hamas' popularity and could undermine the Palestinian Authority's leadership.

"The Palestinian Authority has been negotiating with Israel for 20 years and didn't achieve what Hamas achieved by capturing Shalit," newspaper commentator Anwar Sharif said. "Many Palestinians are now saying that Hamas is right and Abbas is wrong."

However, Abbas views the prisoner exchange as a good thing.

"I welcome this deal which we were awaiting for a long time," Abbas said.