Hamas Delegation Concludes ‘Positive’ Talks in Egypt to End Division

Head of Hamas delegation Saleh Arouri and Fatah leader Azzam Ahmad sign a reconciliation deal in Cairo, Egypt, October 12, 2017. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
Head of Hamas delegation Saleh Arouri and Fatah leader Azzam Ahmad sign a reconciliation deal in Cairo, Egypt, October 12, 2017. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
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Hamas Delegation Concludes ‘Positive’ Talks in Egypt to End Division

Head of Hamas delegation Saleh Arouri and Fatah leader Azzam Ahmad sign a reconciliation deal in Cairo, Egypt, October 12, 2017. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
Head of Hamas delegation Saleh Arouri and Fatah leader Azzam Ahmad sign a reconciliation deal in Cairo, Egypt, October 12, 2017. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh

A senior Hamas delegation has concluded a visit to Cairo following a series of meetings with Egyptian officials to end inter-Palestinian division.

The delegation was headed by Deputy Chief of the Hamas Politburo Saleh al-Arouri.

The visit was “positive” and some outstanding issues have been resolved, sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.

According to a Hamas statement, the delegation members discussed several issues of common interest, especially the bilateral relations and ways to bolster and develop them, the challenges facing the Palestinian cause and political developments in the region.

They also discussed means of ending division to achieve national partnership in order to face major threats to the Palestinian cause, it added.

Talks focused on ways to confront the difficult humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and means to alleviate the suffering of its residents.

Hamas said Egypt expressed keenness for Palestinian parties to reach a political reconciliation.

After President Mahmoud Abbas issues the elections decree, Egypt is set to host meetings between heads of Fatah and Hamas movements.

Cairo is in direct contact with all Palestinian factions on bringing viewpoints on the Palestinian reconciliation closer, Egyptian sources said.

According to Egyptian expert in Palestinian-Israeli affairs Dr. Yasser Tantawi, Cairo’s stance on the Palestinian cause is firm.

Tantawi told Asharq Al-Awsat that his country meets with all Palestinian factions as part of the negotiations with Egyptian officials and diplomats.

“During these meetings, Cairo is briefed on the latest developments and takes diplomatic actions.”

He didn’t disclose the topics discussed during the Cairo meetings, but he stressed that Egypt is exerting strong efforts to reach the best possible solution.



Lebanese Officials Discuss South Lebanon with Visiting US Envoy

A handout photo provided by the Lebanese presidency shows President Joseph Aoun meeting with US deputy special envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus at the presidential palace in Baabda near Beirut - AFP
A handout photo provided by the Lebanese presidency shows President Joseph Aoun meeting with US deputy special envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus at the presidential palace in Baabda near Beirut - AFP
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Lebanese Officials Discuss South Lebanon with Visiting US Envoy

A handout photo provided by the Lebanese presidency shows President Joseph Aoun meeting with US deputy special envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus at the presidential palace in Baabda near Beirut - AFP
A handout photo provided by the Lebanese presidency shows President Joseph Aoun meeting with US deputy special envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus at the presidential palace in Baabda near Beirut - AFP

Senior Lebanese officials said Saturday's talks with visiting US deputy special envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus were positive, focusing on south Lebanon amid a fragile truce between Israel and Hezbollah.

President Joseph Aoun and Ortagus discussed "south Lebanon, the work of the international monitoring committee and the Israeli withdrawal" from Lebanese territory, a statement from the presidency said, characterizing the talks as constructive.

The United States chairs a committee, which also includes France, that is tasked with overseeing the ceasefire that ended more than a year of hostilities including two months of all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam's office, in a statement, also said the discussions with the envoy were "positive".

Ortagus's second visit to Lebanon comes as Israel continues to carry out strikes in Lebanon despite a November 27 ceasefire with Hezbollah, and as its troops remain in several points in the country's south.

Under the truce, Hezbollah was to redeploy its forces north of the Litani River, about 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the Israeli border, and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure in the south.

Israel was due to complete its withdrawal from Lebanon by February 18 after missing a January deadline, but it has kept troops in five places it deems "strategic".

Lebanon's army has been deploying in areas the Israeli military has withdrawn from.

Ortagus and Salam discussed the Lebanese army's work in implementing United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended a 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah and formed the basis of the November truce, his office said.

The resolution says Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers should be the only forces in south Lebanon, and called for the disarmament of all non-state armed groups.

- Economic issues -

Salam's office said the talks also addressed the Syrian-Lebanese border, where deadly clashes erupted last month, emphasising the importance of preventing "any tensions or chaos, and all forms of smuggling", according to the premier's office, AFP reported.

Hezbollah has long exerted influence over large parts of the Lebanese-Syrian border, and Israel has repeatedly struck the area.

The Lebanese and Syrian defense ministers last month signed an agreement addressing security and military issues along the border, which has no official demarcation.

Aoun and Ortagus also discussed economic reforms and "combatting corruption", his office said, a day after Lebanon's new central bank governor Karim Souaid took office.

Souaid has pledged to advance key reforms demanded by international creditors to unlock bailout funds amid a years-long economic crisis.

Salam and Ortagus discussed "the need to reach an agreement with the International Monetary Fund", his office said.

Ortagus also met on Saturday with parliament speaker Nabih Berri, a key Hezbollah ally, discussing "Israeli violations and attacks on Lebanon" as well as economic and administrative reforms, his office said in a statement.

She also met with army chief Rodolphe Haykal.

On her first visit in February, Ortagus sparked anger among Hezbollah supporters by saying the group had been "defeated by Israel" and declaring "the end of Hezbollah's reign of terror".

The Iran-backed group was heavily weakened during the war with Israel, but remains active.

Last month, Ortagus told Lebanese TV channel Al-Jadeed that the US and France had set up working groups that would address issues including the border disputes between the two countries and Israel's continued presence south Lebanon.

"We want to get a political resolution, finally, to the border disputes," Ortagus had said.