CAIRO, December 19, 2009, SPA -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Saturday that his decision not to compete in the next presidency elections was "final," adding that the latest developments in the Palestinian situation prompted him to take this stand. In remarks to the Egyptian "Al-Ahram" daily, he said that since he was not capable of improving the situation in the Palestinian territories, he would not continue at his post, even if a national Palestinian reconciliation was reached. Abbas expressed readiness in negotiating with Hamas with no pre-conditions, should they show seriousness towards signing the national reconciliation agreement and head to Cairo for talks, KUNA reported. On the peace process, the Palestinian President said that there were no developments at this time, but said that a lot of obstacles had been removed in the Syrian-Israeli negotiations, with Turkish mediation. He hailed Egypt for supporting the Palestinian cause. --SPA 11:54 LOCAL TIME 08:54 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/729560