Palestinian president to seek unity government deal with Hamas

[alp227]

The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, will meet the Hamas leader, Khaled Mashal, in Cairo this week to agree details of a new unity government, hoping to close a six-year schism between the political factions that has separated the West Bank from Gaza.

The meeting is scheduled to take place in Cairo on Friday. A spokesperson for the prime minister, Salam Fayyad, confirmed on Sunday he would resign his position should the Fatah and Hamas factions agree to reconcile.

Officials in Israel and the United States greeted news of the meeting with trepidation. Israel has warned that an agreement with Hamas would have grave consequences for its relations with the Palestinian Authority, both in terms of security and the transferral of funds.

"The prime minister has said repeatedly, the Palestinian Authority must choose between peace and Hamas. They cannot have both," an Israeli official said on Sunday, speaking on condition of anonymity.

full: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/nov/20/palestinian-president-unity-deal-hamas

[SoCalMusicLover]

1. No Peace In Our Lifetime

More corrupt governments getting in the way of peace. There will never be peace in the middle east.

[Scurrilous]

2. Israel greets prospects of Palestinian unity with new settlement plans in West Bank

<snip>

"As old times’ animosity seems to be weakening between Hamas and Fatah these days, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict seems to be gaining further strength.

According to a report from the Israeli settlement watchdog Peace Now, Israel plans to invite bids for the construction of 2,230 new homes in settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank this week.

On Saturday, Hamas and Fatah officials stated that a new Palestinian government, likely to be based in Gaza, will be announced after a meeting this November. This new leadership is likely to be led by a Gaza-bound political figure, as the darling of the West Salam Fayyad has said he would step down from his post as Prime Minister.

Posting on his Facebook page that he did not want to “impose himself on the Palestinians,” his resignation is also a concession from President Mahmoud Abbas to Gaza-based Hamas, who never recognized Fayyad for the PM seat.

Fatah leader Mohammad Al-Nahhal said Saturday that the upcoming November meeting between Hamas and Fatah will seek to end the division that has been splitting Palestinians of the West Bank and Gaza both practically and politically since 2007."

http://bikyamasr.com/49036/israel-greets-prospects-of-palestinian-unity-with-new-settlement-plans-in-west-bank/