GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip ? Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas said in an Associated Press interview Saturday that he wants to protect militants from Israel, rejecting Israeli demands that he crack down on them. It was his latest campaign gesture to court gunmen seen by many Palestinians as resistance heroes and by Israel as terrorists.

Abbas defended a series of recent public appearances with gunmen and indicated he has no such plans, saying the Palestinian leadership has a responsibility to protect its people.

“When we see them, when we meet them, and when they welcome us, we owe them,” Abbas said. “This debt always is to protect them from assassination, to protect them from killing, and all these things they are subject to by the Israelis.”

Abbas spoke to the AP in his Gaza City office hours after he was warmly welcomed by dozens of Palestinian gunmen in the Rafah refugee camp, a frequent flashpoint of Israeli-Palestinian fighting.

The rally, in which he praised Palestinian fugitives wanted by Israel as heroes, was the latest in a series of public appearances alongside gunmen. The large crowd chanted pro-Abbas slogans, and the hall became so crowded that Abbas had to exit through a window.

Abbas’ aides have described the campaign stops as election politics. Abbas, who has criticized violence and favors a negotiated peace settlement with Israel, will need to rally the young gunmen behind him to push forward with his agenda after the Jan. 9 election. Abbas is widely expected to win the vote.

But his campaign tactics have raised concerns in Israel about his commitment to peace. Israel refused to negotiate with longtime Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who died Nov. 11, accusing him of backing terrorism.

“We will see how he acts when he is elected, whether he will follow the path of terrorism like Arafat or not,” a senior Israeli official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Abbas also said in the interview that Israel’s planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip is “unacceptable” and demanded a resumption of peace talks based on the internationally backed “road map” peace plan.

“There is a Palestinian partner, and there always will be a Palestinian partner who is going to practice his right to negotiate and speak on behalf of the Palestinian people,” he said.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon initially envisioned the Gaza withdrawal, which is scheduled to begin next summer, as a unilateral act. But he has said he would coordinate the pullout with the new Palestinian leadership if it acts against armed militants after the election.

Palestinian analysts have said Abbas, who lacks the popularity of Arafat, needs to toughen his staid image to win support from young Palestinians caught up in the struggle against Israel.

Ahmed Subah, an aide to Abbas, said in a recent interview that the candidate’s “real” agenda is “ending the Israeli occupation through peaceful negotiations, attaining security for Palestinian citizens and achieving reform and development.”

Through his outreach to the al-Aqsa militants, Abbas is signaling that he wants to co-opt them, not confront them as Israel and the United States have demanded.

Abbas must also figure out how to work with Hamas, the largest Palestinian opposition group. Hamas, which has carried out dozens of suicide bombings, is boycotting the election, although it has said it will honor the results.