RAMALLAH, West Bank — The radical Islamic group Hamas took control of the Palestinian parliament Saturday during a somber swearing-in ceremony, and legislators from the new majority quickly made clear that they would not abide by signed agreements that recognize Israel’s right to exist. In a speech to the new 132-seat Palestinian Legislative Council, the Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, staunchly defended past agreements with Israel, including the 1993 Oslo accords that created the Palestinian Authority and legislature that Hamas entered Saturday. Abbas, the Palestinian Authority’s president, called for the immediate renewal of negotiations with the goal of establishing an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel, declaring, “There is a Palestinian partner” for such talks. “We, as presidency and government, will continue our commitment to the negotiation process as the sole political, pragmatic and strategic choice through which we reap the fruit of our struggle and sacrifices over the long decades,” Abbas told lawmakers gathered here in the government compound known as the Muqata, as well as those who participated by teleconference from the Gaza Strip. Past agreements with Israel were backed by Abbas’s Fatah party, now a minority for the first time. Hamas, designated a terrorist organization by […]