Breakthrough claimed in Cairo dialogue

Gaza/Cairo - A senior Palestinian negotiator involved in the inter-Palestinian dialogue in Cairo said Monday night that a significant breakthrough was achieved in the bilateral dialogue between Fatah and Hamas. Azzam el-Ahmed, a Fatah movement's negotiator, told a news conference in Cairo that a clear breakthrough was made on the matter of 'political prisoners and in other outstanding issues.' His remarks were published by Wafa news agency, the official news agency of the Palestinian national authority. Leaders of the two rival movements began a sixth round of talks on Sunday in Cairo, apparently a final one, aimed at agreeing on outstanding issues related to ending more than two years of political rifts. 'Tomorrow [Tuesday], we will work on the final forms,' said el-Ahmed. He said he hoped that 'all the unresolved outstanding issues related to election system, the joint security force and the joint factional committee will be finalized soon.' In a separate development, the Palestinian Authority (PA) Monday accused the Islamic Hamas movement and its armed wing, the al-Qassam Brigades, of preparing to assassinate senior Palestinian officials in the West Bank before a July 7 deadline to undermine the talks. Plotters were arrested, according to PA Secretary-General Tayeb Abdel Rahim. After the two sides failed to agree on forming a unity government, Egypt has proposed to form a Palestinian factional committee to coordinate between Hamas government in Gaza and the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank. 'What was achieved will be an introduction to a comprehensive convention that will be held in Cairo on July 5, where all Palestinian factions will join in order to sign on a reconciliation deal that ends the rift for life,' said el-Ahmed He added that general principles had been agreed upon during Sunday and Monday sessions. 'We will keep working on closing the file of mutual political arrests in both Gaza and West Bank. Fatah will not do the same thing and react to every action such as arrests or banning people from traveling,' said el-Ahmed. Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip in mid June 2007 after routing President Mahmoud Abbas' security forces and cracking down on his Fatah movement. Egypt's intelligence chief Omer Suleiman informed the two groups' negotiators in Cairo that whether they agreed or not, they should sign a reconciliation agreement on July 7. The two sides have blamed each other for trying to thwart the dialogue. A majority among the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza expressed pessimism that Fatah and Hamas would reach a reconciliation deal, a poll published on Monday said. The poll, conducted by the reliable Jerusalem Media and Communication Center (JMCC), said that 52.1 percent of 1,199 Palestinians who participated expected that the dialogue will fail to reach agreement, while 37 percent expected that it will succeed. The poll was carried out in both the Gaza Strip, ruled by Hamas, and in the West Bank, administrated by President Mahmoud Abbas, between June 20 and June 24. Asked about signing a reconciliation deal on July 7, el-Ahmed told reporters he believed 'we are closer than ever to sign it on time unless new obstacles emerge in the future.'