Hamas invited to Fatah meet for 1st time since 2007

RAMALLAH

Salim al-Zanoon, speaker of the Palestinian National Council, said Thursday that he had invited representatives from Palestinian resistance faction Hamas to attend a council meeting in Ramallah on Saturday and Sunday.  

It is the first time for Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, to be invited to such a meeting since tensions emerged between it and Fatah, which rules the occupied West Bank, in 2007.

"We hope Hamas can send representatives to next month's council meeting if it fails to send representatives to this month's meeting," al-Zanoon told Anadolu Agency.

On Wednesday, Hamas and Fatah signed a reconciliation deal that aims to end years of divisions between the two leading Palestinian factions.

The deal – welcomed by most Arab states – calls for the formation of a national unity government and the holding of elections.

In Tel Aviv, however, news of the agreement received a cold reception.

Commenting on the deal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who heads Fatah, had to choose between reconciliation with Hamas and peace with Israel.

Netanyahu added that the Palestinian resistance movement only wanted to destroy the self-proclaimed Jewish state.

Relations between Fatah and Hamas had been tense since the latter seized control of the Gaza Strip following deadly clashes with pro-Fatah forces in 2007 – one year after Hamas defeated Fatah in Palestinian legislative polls.

Al-Zanoon said Hamas would be allotted with 15 seats in the Palestinian National Council, the legislative body of the Palestine Liberation Organization.

AA could not immediately reach Hamas officials for comment on Fatah's invitation.

Discussions at the upcoming council meeting are expected to cover a range of issues, including ongoing peace talks with Israel and healing inter-Palestinian rifts.

englishnews@aa.com.tr