Palestinian Authority president, Mahmoud Abbas, gave the government ruling party a four day extension to decide upon whether they agree on the recognition of the state of Israel or accept a national referendum on this issue.

It has been decided that negotiations regarding this problem would likely continue until referendum day which some expect to be by mid July, keeping the option of canceling the referendum open, if Hamas does indeed accept Israel and the new border plan.

According to an official statement released by the presidential office, Abbas agreed to the extension as a result of mediation efforts by Arab and Islamic leaders, but also because Hamas asked for more time to analyze the incentive package, which was initially drafted by both Fatah and Hamas Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, who are keen on creating a Palestinian state within the borders established after the 1967 war.

Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas-elected Palestinian Prime Minister told his ministers: "We demand more meetings and more dialogue and we should not start using time as a threat". He also added that they are willing to accept the clause of the document as well as most parts of the 18-point charter but they still need more time to take into consideration the alteration of a few articles. Abbas replied that no revisions would be accepted.

The initial deadline established by Abbas expired on Monday night but it did not bring any resolution to the matter. On the contrary, it created more tension between the Fatah leader and the ruthless organization.