GAZA, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- A Hamas spokesman on Saturday denied that the Islamic movement will nominate one of its leaders from the West Bank to succeed President Mahmoud Abbas of rival Fatah.

    "This is untrue at all," said spokesman Fawzi Barhoom. "There are some people who release trial balloons in order to know what Hamas holds regarding the elections."

    Barhoom, however, said Hamas, which controls the majority of the parliament, "is very interested in the Palestinian people's rights, including the right of elections to select their representatives in the presidency and parliament."

    Abbas' presidency ends in January 2009, and according to the Palestinian law, the speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) replaces the president until the presidential elections are held within 60 days.

    But the Hamas-dominated PLC has been inactive due to internal rift between Hamas and Fatah since June 2007 when Hamas took over the Gaza Strip by force.

    Experts predict that the presidential elections can not be held under the current feud and separation between the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip and the West Bank, ruled by the Fatah-dominated Palestinian National Authority (PNA).

    Some Fatah leaders and legislators said the former PLC passed are solution altering the president's term to expire at the end of the PLC term. The current term of the parliament ends in January 2010.

    Hamas has said it would not recognize Abbas as president after January 2009 and would endorse the speaker's deputy, Ahmed Bahar from Gaza, as president since the PLC speaker is held by Israel.