Palestine’s Hamas, Fatah Reconciliation Talks Kick Off Under Egypt Mediation

Rival Palestinian movements Hamas and Fatah began on Tuesday a new phase of reconciliation talks under the supervision of Egyptian authorities. The talks are aimed at resuming the work of Palestine’s national unity government in the Gaza Strip.

"The purpose of negotiations is to start implementing agreements to allow Palestine’s national unity government to perform its functions in the fields of economy and security in the Gaza Strip in the same way as it happens on the West Bank of the Jordan River," Fatah spokesman Osama Al-Qawasmi told Sputnik.

Moreover, he stressed that Gaza and the West Bank were "a single unit," noting that Fatah was aimed at having successful dialogue with Hamas. Al-Qawasmi added that Palestinian National Authority head Mahmoud Abbas urged parties to conflict to overcome all difficulties and achieve success.

In a September joint statement, the special representatives of the Middle East Quartet, comprising the United Nations, the European Union, Russia and the United States, called for the reunification of the Palestinian parties controlling the Gaza Strip and the West Bank under the leadership of the Palestinian Authority. Meanwhile, earlier in October, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel would not accept any reconciliation deal between Hamas and Fatah without the dismantlement of the Hamas military wing and severance of connections with Iran.