Region | Palestinian Territories
Hamas and Fatah to join hands
Qatar mediates to help rivals end rift
- AP
- Published: 22:00 February 6, 2012
Ramallah: The main Palestinian political rivals on Monday took a major step towards healing their bitter rift, agreeing that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas would head an interim unity government to prepare for general elections in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Abbas and Khalid Mesha'al, head of Hamas, said they would move forward without delay, though it appears unlikely elections can be held in May, as initially envisioned.
Monday's agreement, brokered by Qatar, seemed to bring reconciliation within reach for the first time since the rivals established separate governments, following Hamas' takeover of Gaza in 2007. Previous deals have collapsed amid deep suspicions and intervention by the sides' rival foreign patrons. Abbas is backed by the West while Hamas has been supported by Iran.
Abbas and Mesha'al had reached a reconciliation deal last year, but disagreement over who was to head an interim government had delayed implementation. Hamas strongly opposed Abbas' choice of Salam Fayed, the head of his Palestinian National Authority in the West Bank.
It remains unclear whether an Abbas-led interim government that is supported by Hamas would be acceptable to the West, which gives hundreds of millions of dollars of aid to the Palestinians each year. The US, Europe and Israel consider Hamas a terror organisation, and said they would shun any government that includes members of an unreformed Hamas.
International backing
Abbas has international backing and yesterday's agreement said all Cabinet ministers would be politically independent technocrats. Fayed, who would have to step down if a transitional government is formed, said he welcomed the agreement. It was not announced when the caretaker government would take office.
Monday's breakthrough came after two days of meetings between Abbas and Mesha'al, hosted by Qatar's Emir, Shaikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani. The two Palestinian leaders signed the agreement in a small ceremony at the Emir's diwan, or meeting hall, in Doha.
"We promise our people to implement this agreement as soon as possible," Abbas said after the signing.
"We inform our people that we are serious about healing the wounds ... to reunite our people on the foundation of a political partnership, in order to devote our effort to resisting the [Israeli] occupation," added Mesha'al.
The agreement also calls for rebuilding Gaza, which has been largely cut off from the world as part of an Israeli-Egyptian border blockade, imposed after the Hamas takeover in 2007.
The blockade was eased in the past year, but not enough to revive the Gazan economy, including the vital construction industry, and many large-scale projects remain on hold.
The Qatari leader urged the Arab world to stand behind the Palestinians' "historical rights", in an apparent reference for full statehood and return of lands occupied by Israel in the 1967 war.
The Arab world may have to step in if the West refuses to work with an Abbas-led interim government. The PNA currently receives about $1 billion (Dh3.67 billion) a year for its budget in foreign aid, and that money could be halted if the international community deems a new Palestinian government unacceptable.
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