Fatah walks out of Hamas-dominated parliament

RAMALLAH, West Bank, March 6 (Reuters) - Fatah legislators walked out of the Hamas-led Palestinian parliament on Monday after the Islamic militant group took initial steps to revoke powers the previous legislature granted President Mahmoud Abbas.

Hamas, which crushed Abbas's Fatah faction in a Jan. 25 election, decided to put the issue of the president's enhanced authority on the agenda of the new parliament's first working session, sparking the walk-out.

"We have tried through dialogue and contacts with Hamas to resolve this issue before, but they are insisting on domination," said Azzam al-Ahmed, head of the Fatah bloc in parliament.

In the final session of the previous parliament last month, majority Fatah members pushed through an amendment to an existing law, giving Abbas power to appoint judges to a consitutional court without seeking legislative approval.

Judges appointed by Abbas to the court could be asked to decide whether laws approved by the new Hamas-led parliament are constitutional.

Hamas said the move would effectively give Abbas veto power over laws the new parliament passed and the group vowed to vote down the amendment once the legislature began its work.