1. Mid shot Ismail Haniyeh, Palestinian Prime Minister 2. SOUNDBITE (English) Steve Gutkin, AP Bureau Chief in Jerusalem: Question: "Ehud Olmert, it looks like he is going to be the next Prime Minister of Israel, I think he is meeting the President today and he is going to form the next government of Israel. Is that good news or bad news for Palestinians, what is your view about Olmert taking over?" 3. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Ismail Haniyeh, Palestinian Prime Minister: "We are not talking about the good or bad news. The good news for us would be to have an Israeli government that possesses the courage to recognise our rights and to end the suffering that we have been facing for many long years. The whole issue is about the programme of this government, how will it deal with the legal rights of the Palestinian people, what measures will they take to reduce our suffering and not to implement any plans that will draw the final borders of the Palestinian state in any limited area of the West Bank. Adding Jerusalem, the Jordan valley, building the wall and expanding settlements - all of this means the Palestinian people cannot be happy." 4. Cutaway journalists 5. SOUNDBITE (English) Steve Gutkin, AP Bureau Chief in Jerusalem: Question: "Given the fact that there is so much to gain if Hamas would recognise Israel - the sea port, the airport, the safe passage (between West Bank and Gaza), the open borders, the exports, the world financial aid, so much to gain, why not just do it - just be pragmatic and recognise Israel?" 6. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Ismail Haniyeh, Palestinian Prime Minister: "The issue of the airport, the harbour and the road between the West Bank and Gaza, all these issues are considered as completed as part of the signed agreements with the Palestinian Authority and the PLO, and we were supposed to have had an airport and harbour a long time ago. The airport should be operational by now. Millions of dollars were spent on it and it''s ideal. This is one of the reasons for the suffering of the Palestinian people - they can''t travel abroad. Also, cutting the connection between the West Bank and Gaza strip is a continuation of this suffering. Moreover, the Palestinian government can''t even sit together, and today they detained a minister in the Palestinian government, the Minister of Jerusalem Affairs. Therefore we have a problem and this problem comes from Israel, from the other side. We need (Israelis) to recognise the Palestinian rights and recognise the Palestinian people and their democratic choices." STORYLINE: The new Palestinian prime minister said on Thursday that the new Israeli government needed to recognise rights of the Palestinian people. "The good news for us would be to have an Israeli government that possesses the courage to recognise our rights and to end the suffering that we have been facing for many long years," Ismail Haniyeh said in an interview with The Associated Press. Hamas'' first Cabinet meeting was held last week via videoconference, with simultaneous sessions taking place in Gaza and the West Bank. Israel doesn''t permit Hamas ministers to travel between the two territories through Israel. The Palestinian legislature also meets this way. "The Palestinian government can''t even sit together, and today they (Israeli police) detained a minister, therefore we have a problem and this problem comes from Israel," said Haniyeh. He was referring to the arrest earlier on Thursday by Israel of a member of the Hamas government. Khaled Abu Arafa, Palestinian Minister of Jerusalem Affairs, was detained along with his bodyguard when he was on his way to Izzariya, a West Bank suburb of Jerusalem. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/8b335432d696f8f40806828f93a52bee Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork

• published: 30 Jul 2015
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