Rival Palestinian Movements Reach Agreement
On Monday, leaders of the rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas announced an end to the political stalemates which has divided the two movements in the past. The agreement announced from Doha, Qatar called for the formation of a unity governemnt led “initially” by Western-backed Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and the subsequent election of a cabinet made up of independent technocrats.
Leader of the Hamas movement Khaled Meshaal said that the Palestinians and Hamas “were happy with the agreement” and stated that the deal would create greater unity “in order to be free for facing the enemy” Israel. It remains unclear whether an Abbas-led unity government would be acceptable to the West, much of whom classify Hamas as a terrorist organization. The U.S. government refuses to recognize Hamas as a legitimate governing body due to its perceived violent ideology and refusal to recognize Israel.
An agreement between the two factions shows signs of “narrowing interests.” Starch ideological differences which have traditionally divided the rival Palestinian factions show signs of reconciliation, with the Palestinian Authority “losing faith” in continued negotiations and Hamas leaning toward taking a “more pragmatic” approach.”President Abbas is very interested in ending the split, particularly with the failure of the peace talks, and Khaled Mashaal is getting closer to the PLO position, in harmony with the changes of the Muslim Brotherhoods in the region,” said Majid Sweilim, political anaylst in the West Bank.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that any agreement between Hamas and the Palestinian authority will make it “impossible to hold peace talks.” In a statement Monday, Netanyahu said: “It is either peace with Hamas or peace with Israel. You can’t have them both.” ”They are avoiding the main issue,” said political analyst Hani al Masri. “They are waiting to see what the international community’s reaction will be. This leaves all the important issues unresolved.”
