Hamas could evolve into a purely political party, participating in elections in a sovereign, independent and democratic Palestinian state, Salah Abdel Shafi, the Palestinian ambassador to Austria, told German public radio on Wednesday. “They will become part of a political Palestinian society,” Shafi, who represents the Fatah-controlled Palestinian Authority based in the West Bank, told Deutschlandfunk. Fatah and Hamas, the largest two Palestinian organizations which have long been bitter rivals, have over recent years made attempts at reconciliation, but so far with little success. Hamas, an …