In a dramatic announcement, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Thursday he will call a national referendum on the parameters of a future Palestinian state if no agreement is reached with Hamas on a political platform within 10 days.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas also known as Abu Mazen, attends a Palestinian National Dialogue Conference at Abbas' headquarters in the West Bank town of Ramallah, Thursday, May 25, 2006. [AP]

If the deadline expires, Abbas said, he would call a referendum within 40 days on a proposal to accept Palestinian statehood in the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem, the areas Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast War.

A senior Hamas official said the militant group accepted the proposal.

"Returning to the people is one of the most important principles in democracy," said Abdel Aziz Duaik, the Hamas speaker of parliament.