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.'
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