Quartet envoy may leave at end of April - staffers

JERUSALEM, March 11 (Reuters) West Asia envoy James Wolfensohn told staff today he was unlikely to agree to remain in his post beyond April 30 without a new mandate setting his role once a Hamas-led Palestinian government is in place.

The Quartet of Middle East mediators -- the United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations -- extended olfensohn's mission by a month, through April 30, and could propose a further extension next month, his aides said.

But in a meeting with staff, Wolfensohn said he was unlikely to agree to stay beyond April 30 unless he was given a new mandate spelling out Quartet policy and his role in it once a Hamas government is in power, participants said.

A Western diplomatic source close to Wolfensohn said: ''The current mandate is not in tune with the circumstances. It doesn't give him the tools to be effective here.'' The Quartet, which initially appointed Wolfensohn last April to help coordinate Israel's Gaza pullout, has demanded Hamas, winner of the Jan. 25 Palestinian election, renounce violence, recognise the Jewish state and abide by past peace deals.

Diplomats said the EU, Russia and the UN pushed to extend and expand Wolfensohn's mandate, but ran into resistance from some top US officials.

Wolfensohn told staffers he would remain in the post until after the March 28 Israeli elections but may step down before April 30.

''He said he will leave at the point where he feels he's done everything he can under the current mandate,'' a Wolfensohn staffer said.

With the United States and Israel ruling out direct contacts with a Hamas-led Palestinian Authority, Wolfensohn's departure could create a diplomatic vacuum.

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