U.N. chief refuses meeting with Hamas

RAMALLAH, West Bank – U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, declaring the atmosphere “not fully ripe,” shunned officials from the Islamic militant Hamas group on Sunday, dealing a setback to the new Palestinian government’s efforts to win international recognition.\nBan’s comments came on a day of high-profile diplomacy, with the U.N. chief and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice both in the region for talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders. Both hope their clout will help to prod the two sides to start talking peace again.\nHamas, branded a terrorist group by the U.S. and European Union, joined the more moderate Fatah Party in a coalition government last week. The bitter rivals have expressed hope their alliance would end international isolation of the previous hard-line Hamas government.\nU.S. and European diplomats have held a stream of contacts with moderate members of the new coalition while avoiding Hamas ministers.\nWhile welcoming the new government’s formation, Ban said “the atmosphere is not fully ripe” for talks with Hamas, which has killed more than 250 Israelis in suicide bombings and refuses to recognize the Jewish state.\nAfter a meeting with President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah, Ban said he hoped the new government would “show a genuine commitment to the basic principles ... of peace.”