United Nations ? Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Sunday that he has asked U.N. and European leaders to press for the disarming of Hamas militants and the abolition of their covenant – Israel’s destruction.

Sharon told a conference of American Jewish leaders that Israel won’t cooperate in Palestinian elections scheduled for January unless those two conditions are met.

Israeli assistance is considered vital for smooth elections. In January, when Mahmoud Abbas was elected to replace the late Yasser Arafat, Israel opened West Bank roadblocks and eased other restrictions.

Abbas made a “major mistake” by inviting Hamas to run in the elections, Sharon said. Their presence in the national Palestinian government is “unbearable” so long as they don’t disarm and abandon their call for Israel’s destruction, he said.

Israel says Hamas participation in Palestinian elections violates the 1994 interim peace accords that created the Palestinian Authority, banning groups from running if they call for destruction of Israel.

Abbas is under heavy international pressure to disarm militants, but is reluctant to do so for fear that would touch off civil war.