Cairo Talks: Hamas, Jihad Open to 'Technocrat Cabinet'

Hamas and Jihad officials during the meeting in Cairo (Hamas Movement)
Hamas and Jihad officials during the meeting in Cairo (Hamas Movement)
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Cairo Talks: Hamas, Jihad Open to 'Technocrat Cabinet'

Hamas and Jihad officials during the meeting in Cairo (Hamas Movement)
Hamas and Jihad officials during the meeting in Cairo (Hamas Movement)

Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements continued their talks in Cairo with Egyptian security officials to discuss several issues focusing on establishing "long-term calm" in Gaza and improving the humanitarian and economic situation in the Strip.

Hamas announced an expanded meeting began in Cairo between the head of the politburo, Ismail Haniyeh, and the Secretary-General of the Jihad movement, Ziad al-Nakhala.

They discussed ways to strengthen their strategic relationship "to serve issues of the resistance and the Palestinian people." They also highlighted the attacks on the Palestinian people in Jerusalem, al-Aqsa Mosque, and the West Bank.

A Palestinian source familiar with the consultations said the meeting between the coalitions took place separately from the discussions that the leaders of each faction held separately with Egyptian security officials.

The leaders also met with a delegation representing the Democratic Reform Bloc, led by Palestinian leader Mohammed Dahlan.

The source, who spoke to Asharq Al-Awsat on condition of anonymity, explained that the consultations between the factions and the Egyptian side focused on "seeking a long-term calm in Gaza" and "improving the humanitarian and economic situation in the Strip."

He pointed out that the officials lauded Egypt's role in maintaining calm in the sector and renewed the affirmation of their response to these efforts to spare the enclave from any Israeli escalation.

The source referred to a proposal to form a Palestinian "technocratic government" that would supervise, within a year, the parliamentary and presidential elections in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Hamas and Jihad initially approved the proposal, but they expressed to the Egyptian side their fear that the Palestinian Authority (PA) might obstruct the move.

The source pointed out that the Hamas movement feared President Mahmoud Abbas might hinder the proposal, citing his decision to appoint a new constitutional court.

Hamas does not recognize the legitimacy of the constitutional court and considers it a mere tool to circumvent the Palestinian President's decision to dissolve the elected parliament, confirming that Abbas does not intend to move forward with holding the elections.

On Thursday, four judges of the Supreme Constitutional Court took the oath before the President in Ramallah after Abbas issued a decision in May appointing new judges, following his previous decision to retire seven.

In 2018, the President dissolved the Palestinian Legislative Council, controlled by Hamas. The movement rejected the decision saying it "has no constitutional or legal value."

The last elections for the Legislative Council were held in 2006.

- Commodity entry

The source pointed out that the talks also addressed ways to facilitate the entry of goods and merchandise into the Gaza Strip in coordination with Egypt.

He indicated that the PA required supervision of the crossings to collect customs, which Hamas also rejected.

Egypt had invited the Hamas and Jihad leaders to a new round of consultations, which began last Saturday, after the arrival of the members of the delegations of the two movements, whether from the Gaza Strip or abroad.

The consultations mainly aim to maintain calm in the Gaza Strip and ensure that the security situation does not lead to another confrontation with Israel.



Sudan's RSF, Allies Sign Charter for Rival Government

The Sudan war has uprooted more than 12 million people and caused what the United Nations calls the world's worst hunger and displacement crises - AFP
The Sudan war has uprooted more than 12 million people and caused what the United Nations calls the world's worst hunger and displacement crises - AFP
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Sudan's RSF, Allies Sign Charter for Rival Government

The Sudan war has uprooted more than 12 million people and caused what the United Nations calls the world's worst hunger and displacement crises - AFP
The Sudan war has uprooted more than 12 million people and caused what the United Nations calls the world's worst hunger and displacement crises - AFP

Sudan's Rapid Support Forces and its allies have agreed to form a parallel government, they said Sunday, despite warnings such a move could further fragment the war-ravaged country.

"The charter has been signed," Najm al-Din Drisa, spokesman of the United Civil Forces, one of the signatories, told AFP.

The parties to the agreement, inked behind closed doors in Nairobi, said the charter establishes a "government of peace and unity" in rebel-controlled areas of the northeast African country.

The move comes nearly two years into a devastating war with the regular army that has uprooted more than 12 million people and caused what the United Nations calls the world's largest hunger and displacement crises.
Among those who agreed to it was a faction of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), led by Abdelaziz al-Hilu, which controls parts of the South Kordofan and Blue Nile states in the country's south.

Abdel Rahim Daglo, deputy and brother of RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo -- who was notably absent -- also signed.

The charter, seen by AFP, calls for "a secular, democratic, decentralized state based on freedom, equality, and justice, without bias toward any cultural, ethnic, religious, or regional identity".

It also outlines plans for a "new, unified, professional, national army" with a new military doctrine that "reflects the diversity and plurality characterizing the Sudanese state".

The proposed government aims to end the war, ensure unhindered humanitarian aid and integrate armed groups into a single, national force.

The war, originally triggered by disputes over integrating the RSF into the military, has killed tens of thousands, with both sides accused of atrocities.

Last month, the US determined the RSF had committed genocide in the western region of Darfur.

The conflict has torn the country in two, with the army controlling the north and east and the RSF holding nearly all of Darfur and swathes of the south.

The army is currently on the verge of recapturing the capital Khartoum, after surging through central Sudan and regaining territory this year.

In its alliance with the SPLM-N, the RSF side now controls more of the south and has border access to Libya, Chad, the Central African Republic, South Sudan and Ethiopia.

A spokesman for UN chief Antonio Guterres warned the move could "increase the fragmentation of the country and risk making this crisis even worse".

But the charter's signatories denied any intentions to divide the country.

Alaa El-Din Nuqd, a signatory representing professional unions, said the proposed government would benefit people in RSF-held areas "who have been cut off from essential services".

Nuqd said the charter was a step toward "protecting the dignity" of war-hit civilians.

Analysts say the move is aimed at strengthening the RSF after their recent battlefield setbacks.

Sudanese political analyst Kholood Khair said the RSF's ultimate goals were to acquire an air force, facilitate humanitarian aid to areas under its control and secure a stronger negotiation position.

"They want to go into mediations as a government, not a militia," she told AFP.

However, any arms sales to the potential government would still be in violation of a Darfur embargo which the United Nations has recommended expanding to cover all of Sudan.