Fatah, Hamas Delegations Head to Cairo for Reconciliation Talks
RAMALLAH/Gaza (Dispatches) – Delegations representing the Gaza-based Hamas resistance movement and the West Bank-based Fatah movement will head to Cairo to continue their negotiations on internal reconciliation, senior Palestinian officials said on Sunday.
"The Fatah delegation is headed by its Central Committee Secretary-General Jibril Rajoub, and two other senior leaders -- Rawhi Fattouh and Ahmed Helles,” Abbas Zaki, a senior Fatah leader, told Xinhua.
"These meetings aim to continue the reconciliation efforts between Fatah and Hamas to end the internal division that will lead to the Palestinian presidential and legislative elections as soon as possible,” Zaki added.
He stresses "those efforts will achieve success in ending the Palestinian division.”
Hazem Qassem, spokesman of Hamas in Gaza, said in a press statement that Hamas will meet Fatah in Cairo to prepare for building a joint strategy to face all challenges against the Palestinian cause.
The Palestinian leadership has been divided between Fatah and Hamas since 2006, when the latter scored a landslide victory in parliamentary elections in the Gaza Strip. Hamas has ever since been running the coastal enclave, while Fatah has been based in the autonomous parts the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Hamas has repeatedly said it is ready to accept key reconciliation conditions offered by Abbas while underlining its "desire to achieve national unity.”
"The Fatah delegation is headed by its Central Committee Secretary-General Jibril Rajoub, and two other senior leaders -- Rawhi Fattouh and Ahmed Helles,” Abbas Zaki, a senior Fatah leader, told Xinhua.
"These meetings aim to continue the reconciliation efforts between Fatah and Hamas to end the internal division that will lead to the Palestinian presidential and legislative elections as soon as possible,” Zaki added.
He stresses "those efforts will achieve success in ending the Palestinian division.”
Hazem Qassem, spokesman of Hamas in Gaza, said in a press statement that Hamas will meet Fatah in Cairo to prepare for building a joint strategy to face all challenges against the Palestinian cause.
The Palestinian leadership has been divided between Fatah and Hamas since 2006, when the latter scored a landslide victory in parliamentary elections in the Gaza Strip. Hamas has ever since been running the coastal enclave, while Fatah has been based in the autonomous parts the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Hamas has repeatedly said it is ready to accept key reconciliation conditions offered by Abbas while underlining its "desire to achieve national unity.”