Mahmoud Abbas's assurance to the United Nations last night that any Palestinian coalition government he led would recognise Israel and renounce violence has starkly exposed the gulf in efforts to achieve Middle East peace.

Hamas, the Islamic militant group which currently runs the Palestinian territories, responded that there was no way that it would recognise Israel but that it would consent to a ten-year truce with the Jewish state.

The possible compromise was swiftly rejected by Israel, which said it would not do business with a Palestinian government promising anything less than full recognition of the Jewish state, an end to violence and an agreement to abide by previous peace agreements.

"This does not interest us," said Avi Pazner, an Israeli government spokesman, replying to the Hamas statement. "What we demand from any Palestinian government to be able to resume dialogue is that it submit to the conditions set by the international community."

Mr Abbas offered his assurance in a speech to the United Nations General Assembly, which is meeting this week in New York.

The Palestinian President has been trying to negotiate a unity government between his Fatah movement and the Islamic movement Hamas, which decisively won parliamentary elections in January.

Palestinian politicians hope that forming a new, coalition administration, with a softer line on Israel, will persuade the international community to lift the crippling economic sanctions that it imposed because of Hamas's refusal to disband its militias or change its constitution, which calls for Israel's destruction.

Mr Abbas has been in coalition talks with Hamas for two weeks, and the two sides have reached a preliminary agreement that the new government would strive to set up a Palestinian state alongside Israel - implying, without explicitly stating, recognition of Israel. Renouncing violence is also part of the preliminary agreement.

The talks have faltered because the West and Israel have pressed for Hamas to state clearly its willingness to recognise Israel. This Hamas has refused to do.

Within hours of Mr Abbas's statement the extent of the gulf was exposed, when Ahmed Yousef - a Hamas spokesman and the main political adviser to Ismail Haniyeh, the Palestinian Prime Minister - flatly responded that "there won't be a national unity government if Hamas is asked to recognise Israel".

Mr Yousef said that instead, Hamas was prepared to agree to a "long-term truce for five or ten years, until the occupation withdraws".

Hamas has in the past insisted that Israel withdraw from the West Bank and east Jerusalem, which it captured in 1967.

Israel responded that it was not prepared to accept anything less than full and explicit recognition. Israel plans to close some outlying settlements in the West Bank, but has made plain it has no intention of retreating from the bulk of the captured territory.

Relations between Hamas and Israel, already poor, have deteriorated radically since Hamas militants were involved in kidnapping an Israeli soldier in a cross-border raid in June. The attack has led to a four month campaign by the Israeli army against Islamic militias in the Gaza Strip.

The temperature within the Palestinian territories has also grown overheated, as Hamas militias clashed with the police and with militias loyal to Fatah. Hostage-taking has reached epic proportions.

Speaking at the UN in New York last night, Mr Abbas said that the hostage-taking and the violence had to stop.

"Any future government will commit to imposing security and order, to ending the phenomena of multiple militias, indiscipline and chaos, and to the rule of law," he said.

He also made plain that the President and the overarching structures of the Palestinian state would take charge of external peace talks , rather than leaving matters to one political party.

Negotiations would be under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, which he heads, he said. In addition, any results would be submitted either to a national referendum or to the Palestinian National Council.

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