MOSCOW, February 2 (RIA Novosti) - The latest surge of violence in the Gaza Strip, which has left more than 20 Palestinians dead and over 200 wounded, may frustrate truce agreements between Palestine's rival factions, the Russian Foreign Ministry's spokesman said Friday.
"Such tragic developments frustrate truce agreements, which were reached with great difficulty between the key political movements in the Palestinian National Authority, Fatah and Hamas," Mikhail Kamynin told RIA Novosti.
The latest wave of shooting between Fatah and Hamas gunmen, which began Thursday on the streets of the troubled region, was brought to an end by a ceasefire Friday.
The diplomat said the bloodshed in Palestine "runs against the interests of Palestinians, and diverts them from resolving the key strategic problem, the formation of a sovereign state by means of talks with Israel."
A previous wave of violence was subdued Tuesday by a ceasefire between ruling Islamist group Hamas and pro-presidential opposition Fatah, following talks between Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh and an aide to President Mahmoud Abbas, whose faction was defeated by Hamas in parliamentary elections a year ago.
The escalating struggle for political influence between the factions has scuttled talks to form a unity government.
After Hamas came to power, Western nations imposed an aid embargo on Palestine, as Israel, the United States and the European Union still consider the group to be a terrorist organization.
If dialogue fails, Abbas, whose Fatah lost its long-standing political monopoly in the PNA, has threatened to call early presidential and parliamentary elections.
Hamas has been boycotted by the West for its denial to recognize Israel's right to existence, give up violence and comply with previous Palestinian-Israeli agreements seeking a solution to the long-protracted Middle East crisis.
Russia and the other Middle East Quartet mediating parties - the United States, the European Union, and the United Nations - are currently meeting in Washington to discuss the issue.
