GAZA, April 23 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haneya of Hamas is likely to embark on an Arab and Asian tour at the beginning of next month, an aide said on Monday.

    In an interview with the Jordan-based al-Ghad newspaper, Ahmed Yousef, political advisor to Haneya, said the tour will include Jordan in addition to other Arab and Asian countries.

    It will be his first tour to Asia since Haneya took office as prime minister of the national unity government in March.

    Ties between Jordan and Hamas have worsened and no Hamas officials have visited the kingdom since April 2006 when Jordanian authorities discovered weapons that were allegedly smuggled by Hamas through Jordanian territories.

    Yousef said the tour will start after President Mahmoud Abbasends his European tour which aimed at persuading EU countries to lift sanctions on the new Hamas-led unity government.

    Although the Palestinian national unity government embraces moderate Fatah movement of Abbas, many countries are still reluctant to deal with it as its political platform falls short of explicitly recognizing Israel and renouncing violence.

    The new coalition was sworn in on March 17 according to an agreement signed by two mainstream movements of Fatah and Hamas during a Saudi-brokered talks in Mecca in February.