WASHINGTON, April 2 (Saba) - Commenting on media reports that US officials met with Hamas officials in recent months, the United States did not deny those reports but affirmed the American individuals met in private capacity, Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) reported on Friday.

Assistant Secretary of State Philip Crowley told reporters "there have been meetings with private individuals and Hamas officials. These are private meetings. They were not conveying any particular message from the United States".

"We were not aware of the meeting or the presentation in Doha by a Foreign Service officer on sabbatical to the Council on Foreign Relations. We are looking into that issue", he added.

Crowley noted that "as far as I know, there was no permission granted for that encounter. That said, our policy has not changed and our policy is not going to change".

"Our policy is rooted in the Quartet principles. And as the secretary of State and others have said, anyone who embraces those principles can play a future role in the process", he added.

Crowley mentioned that this State Department official was "on sabbatical...
as far as I know, no one in the State Department was aware of her presentation. We are looking into it, and we'll figure out what actions to take there once we understand all the facts".

Commenting on Israeli strikes in the Palestinian territories in response to rocket attacks, Crowley responded that "I do not know what the predicate was for the Israeli action. The Israelis have a right to self defense. At the same time, we do not ultimately think there is a military solution to this".

"It is why we have been pressing the Palestinians and the Israelis to get into proximity talks that can lead to direct negotiations. But we are always concerned that steps taken by either side, legitimate or otherwise, can be misconstrued, can be twisted and end up causing turbulence that can be an impediment to progress", he added.

Crowley affirmed that "our message remains to the Israelis and Palestinians that we need to get the proximity talks going, focus on the substance, move to direct negotiations and ultimately arrive at a settlement that ends the conflict once and for all".
Saba