GAZA CITY
Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh on Tuesday called for healing the Palestinian rift and achieving reconciliation.
Speaking at a meeting with a Fatah-led delegation in Gaza City, Haniyeh accused the United States and Israel of seeking to undermine the Palestinian cause.
"It has become imperative now to end divisions to abort U.S. and Israeli schemes," he said, going on to call for implementing signed agreements between rival Hamas and Fatah regarding the inter-Palestinian reconciliation.
"We will not allow the Israeli army to be happy with our divisions," Haniyeh said. "We must have one leadership, one government and on political decision."
Fatah member Azzam al-Ahmad, for his part, said that "It is time to end divisions".
"Fatah supports Palestinian unity whether peace talks with Israel succeeded or failed," he added.
The delegation arrived in the Gaza Strip from Ramallah earlier Tuesday to discuss possible means of achieving reconciliation with Hamas officials.
Tension has been high between Hamas – which governs the Gaza Strip – and Fatah – which holds the Palestinian Authority – since 2007, when Hamas routed troops loyal Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and seized control of the entire strip.
Continued conflict between Hamas and Fatah obliged the former to set up its own government in Gaza, while Fatah did the same in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
In 2011, the two factions hammered out a reconciliation deal under Egyptian sponsorship. The following year, the two sides agreed to create a unity government headed up by Abbas to pave the way for parliamentary polls.
The terms of the agreement, however, were never implemented.
By Mustafa Haboosh
englishnews@aa.com.tr
