Expanded meetings of the Palestinian reconciliation process will begin in Egypt on Tuesday in the presence of representatives of 13 movements and fronts from inside and outside Ramallah and the Gaza Strip.
The gatherers will discuss mechanisms for the implementation of the Palestinian National Accord signed in Cairo in 2011.
A delegation of representatives of the 13 Palestinian factions entered Egypt through the Rafah crossing to participate in the two-day talks, which are held under the sponsorship of the Egyptian General Intelligence.
Samih Barzak, a Fatah official in Cairo, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the presence of all factions in the Cairo meeting would achieve faster the goal of reconciliation, which the Palestinian people eagerly await.
On October 13, the head of the Fatah delegation, Azzam al-Ahmed, and his Hamas counterpart, Saleh al-Arouri, signed a joint document to activate the terms of the Cairo Agreement in the Egyptian General Intelligence headquarters, following two days of negotiations between representatives of the two factions in Cairo.
The document detailed the procedures to enable the National Reconciliation Government, headed by Rami al-Hamdallah, to exercise its responsibilities in managing the affairs of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank as of December 1 at the latest.
It also seeks to resolve all problems caused by the Palestinian division, including providing the full supervision of the Palestinian presidential guard over all Palestinian crossings, whether on the Egyptian or Israeli sides.
On the other hand, Abdellatif al-Qanuu, a spokesman for Hamas, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the movement and other participants would discuss several pressing issues, mainly the formation of the Palestine Liberation Organization and the dates for the legislative and presidential elections.
“Hamas was committed to the first part of reconciliation by enabling the Hamdallah government to take over the ministries and handing over the crossings to the presidential guard,” Qanuu said, emphasizing the need to execute the remaining part of the reconciliation process and the Cairo agreement.
