The Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas) on Saturday denied reports that Egypt conveyed an Israeli message to Hamas threatening to assassinate it leaders.

"The matter doesn't need messages or clarifications because Israel did not stop assassinating Hamas leaders until not long ago, " Hamas spokesman Ayman Taha said.

According to the reports, Israel threatened to kill Hamas leaders if Hamas insisted on its demands to exchange an Israeli soldier for a number of Palestinian prisoners.

"We expect Israel's conspiracies and deceptions but this will not change us and the death of our leaders will not weaken Hamas and will not make it soften its demands," Taha continued.

Taha also denied that Egypt has conveyed the Israeli message to Hamas. "The Egyptians don't carry messages of these kinds."

Hamas led a cross-border raid in 2006 and captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit from his base near Gaza Strip. Through the indirect talks with Israel, which stopped since nearly one month ago, Hamas demands the release of more than 1,000 prisoners in exchange for the Israeli soldier.

Meanwhile, Taha said contacts between his movement that controls Gaza Strip and Israel have never stopped. However, he denied that Hamas received an invitation for talks with the Egyptian officials about the Palestinian internal crisis.

In 2007, Hamas took over the Gaza Strip after routing the security forces of President Mahmoud Abbas. Since then, Egypt has been mediating to broker a reconciliation between Hamas and Abbas' Fatah movement.

(Xinhua News Agency August 23, 2008)