Trump sees recognition of a Palestinian state as reward to Hamas, US official says

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump believes that recognizing Palestinian statehood would be rewarding the militant group Hamas and he does not intend to do that, a White House official said on Wednesday, after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced his country's decision on the issue.

Carney told reporters that Canada intends to recognize a Palestinian state at the United Nations in September.

“As the president stated, he would be rewarding Hamas if he recognizes a Palestinian state, and he doesn’t think they should be rewarded," a White House official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. "So he is not going to do that. President Trump’s focus is on getting people fed (in Gaza).”

The official did not respond to a question on whether the U.S. was given advance notice of Carney's announcement.

(Reporting By Matt Spetalnick; Editing by Leslie Adler)