Occupied Jerusalem: Dr Mustafa Al Barghouthi, a member of the Legislative Council and a prominent Palestinian activist, could not find a better word than "disaster" to express his anger at the announcement made by Hamas officials regarding a study that aims to separate the economy from Israel and connect with Egypt.

"These declarations are very risky and briefly mean the separation of the West Bank from the Gaza Strip and the end of the Palestinian dream," Dr Barghouthi told Gulf News.

Dr Barghouthi as well as the rest of the Palestinian parties called for the immediate resumption of discussions between Hamas and Fatah.

"The talk that is spread in the media about suggestions and plans to separate the Gaza Strip from the West Bank is very risky and is inadmissible. No Palestinian could approve it at this time since it only serves the Israelis," the Palestinian Arab Bloc added in a statement in Ramallah on Sunday.

"Hamas is driving the nation to hell. This speech only benefits Israel which in every meeting between President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert excuses about Hamas and the Gaza Strip are brought up.

"And now this suggestion that is approved by some states in the area has come up in order to destroy the Palestinians' hope. Have mercy on the nation," the Chairman of the Negotiation Department in the Palestinian Liberation Organisation Dr Saeb Iriqat told Gulf News.

The economic analyst Taher Al Hajj asserted that Hamas, from this separation, wants to enforce its claimed stance that Arabs are the strategic depth of the Palestinian nation forgetting that this step will have negative economic effects.

He also added that due to this separation, Israel will lose approximately three billion dollars which is about the amount of the Strip's imported goods and materials.

The negative impact that may appear is the transformation of the Gaza market to a market of forged currency which will, as a result, lead to the crash of the rest of the Palestinian economy.

A Gaza-based businessman, who asked not to be named, told Gulf News that he is working on transferring his business and factories abroad and specifically to Egypt as the economic condition is about to crash due to the political situation and Hamas' disorder.

As for Israel, relief was evident in the area.

"Everyone knows that the connection between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank does not benefit Israel, it rather benefits Palestine.

"Therefore, we should encourage Hamas' complete separation from Israel and its connection with Egypt," the former General and former chairman of the National Security Council Uzi Dayan said on Sunday in an official broadcast.

Egypt has not reacted to Hamas' suggestion.

Israel's Minister of Agriculture Shalom Simhon rushed to confirm in a weekly governmental session on Sunday that Israel is studying the possibility of preventing the exportation of agricultural production from the Gaza Strip to Europe and other states via Israel due to the breakthrough of the borders in Rafah and the entrance of Egyptian agricultural production to the Gaza Strip without supervision.