Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on Friday denied having rejected Hamas's candidate to head a promised national unity cabinet as reported by a website close to the movement.
"This information is baseless. Everything is still being looked at and when we have got results we will announce them," Abbas told reporters.
Quoting "informed sources", a website close to Hamas had claimed Abbas was opposed to Mohammed Shubair after the United States, Israel and "certain Arab parties" rejected the independent academic as "too close" to the group.
Abbas made his position clear to prime minister Ismail Haniya, head of the current Hamas government, during talks in Gaza City late on Thursday, the Palestinian Information Centre said.
The 60-year-old Shubair, a clinical biologist and former president of the Islamic University in Gaza City, is considered close to Hamas but never joined the party that thrashed Abbas's secular Fatah party in a January election.
"I categorically deny that president Abbas has rejected any of the candidates put forward by Hamas, including Mohammed Shubair," Palestinian Authority spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina told AFP.
Harangued by journalists while leaving a Gaza City mosque following the Friday prayers, Haniya refused to comment, other than calling his talks with Abbas late on Thursday "good and positive".
"The joint Hamas-Fatah committee will meet again today to continue consultations on the unity government," the premier added.
One Palestinian official who refused to give his name, however, earlier called Thursday's talks between the two leaders "unsuccessful".
Sources quoted by the Palestinian Information Centre accused Fatah elements of trying to use all means to sabotage efforts to form a unity government.
Palestinians are trying to form a unity administration to end a crippling Western aid freeze imposed after the Hamas-led government took power in March refusing to renounce violence or recognise Israel and past peace deals.
An earlier agreement last September on the political platform for a new cabinet collapsed after Hamas leaders made a series of statements rejecting any recognition of Israel, even implicit.
Top Hamas officials have continued to insist that the much hyped unity cabinet will not recognise Israel, despite what had appeared to be recent progress towards a deal after months of deadlock.
A breakthrough appeared to be nearing after sources in Hamas and Fatah revealed last Sunday there was an agreement between the two rival factions on Shubair as premier designate.
Two days later, however, Abbas denied reports that he had agreed with Hamas that the clinical biologist would head the new cabinet.
"There are no specific names for who will head the prime ministry but several names, and so far no decision has been made on a specific person," Abbas said after talks with King Abdullah II of Jordan.
At least one member of the Israeli cabinet, Public Security Minister Avi Dichter, has said Shubair alone would not persuade the Jewish state to lift economic sanctions, charging that during his tenure at the Islamic University the academic headed "a nest of terrorists and assassins."