Fatah, Hamas to sign reconciliation deal on October 25

Oct 5, 2009, 20:28 GMT

Amman - A reconciliation agreement between the feuding Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas is to be signed in Cairo on October 25, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit said Monday.

Abul Gheit made the announcement after a meeting in Amman with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, which was also attended by head of the Egyptian Intelligence Department Omar Suleiman.

'The signing of the reconciliation accord in Cairo on October 25 will be followed by a meeting on October 26 of the Arab follow-up committee, which will also be attended by non-Arab parties and leaders of Palestinian factions,' the Egyptian minister told a press conference held with his Jordanian counterpart Nasser Judeh.

Feuds between Hamas and its secular Palestinian rival Fatah mounted after Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip in June 2007, and ousted Abbas security forces.

Egyptian intelligence officials have been trying to broker an agreement between Hamas and Fatah, which controls Palestinian- administered areas of the West Bank, since March.

The two Egyptian officials visited Amman to inform Abbas of Hamas' reply to a package of proposals that was sent recently by Egypt to both parties.

Hamas' Politburo chief Khalid Mashaal visited Cairo last week carrying what he called a 'positive reply' to the Egyptian proposals.

Abul Gheit said that he had agreed with the Palestinian sides to hold presidential and general elections in the Palestinian territories between March and June 2010.

'Setting an exact date for the polling process will be left to the Palestinian parties,' he said.

The Egyptian minister said that the conclusion of a reconciliation between Abbas' Fatah movement and the radical Hamas group 'will pave the ground for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip,' which suffered extensive devastation as a result of Israel's offensive in January.

Eight months after the cessation of hostilities in Gaza, donor countries were still withholding construction funds pending an end to feuds between Hamas, which is in control of the Gaza Strip, and Abbas' government, which enjoys the backing of the world's leading powers including the United States and the European Union.