November 6, 2007 (LPAC)--The leader of Hamas, Khaled Mashaal, warned that the U.S.-sponsored Mideast peace conference planned for the end of November was to distract attention away from the fact that the Bush Administration is preparing for an attack against Iran.

"Strategically, it (the U.S.) is setting the stage and covering up for the upcoming American war in the region," Mashaal told a press conference at s forum of Palestinian intellectuals in Damascus. "There are preparations for an aggression against Iran, which could include other parties - Syria, Lebanon and Hizbullah. Therefore, America is distracting us with a false game and is preparing itself for the real one," he said, according to a report in today's Jerusalem Post.