Abbas, Mashaal Meet in Egypt

Local Editor

Egyptian President Muhammad Mursi held Wednesday separate meetings with the leaders of Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah in Cairo, before the political chiefs sat together later in the evening.

Palestinian and Egyptian officials said Mursi met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah and Khalid Mashaal of Hamas to discuss how to implement a reconciliation deal that they agreed in Cairo in 2011.

Egyptian mediators had hoped to coax all three into the same room, but Abbas and Mashaal held another meeting of their political factions later in the evening at a Cairo venue.
Speaking after Mursi's meeting with Abbas, Egyptian presidential spokesman Yasser Ali gave no indication of any major progress but said Cairo would spare no effort to bring about reconciliation.

For his part, Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri played down the talks in Cairo, describing them as "exploratory".
"Egyptian officials aim to explore where things stand and look into the best ways to activate reconciliation efforts," he told Reuters.

Meanwhile, Hamas politburo member Izzat al-Rishq, who attended the gathering revealed that "the two parties agreed to call on all Palestinian factions to implement the reconciliation agreement."
It was held in a "very good and promising atmosphere," he added.
Fatah and Hamas officials will meet soon to discuss further developments, Rishq said, but did not give a date or more details.

It is worth mentioning that the meeting between the two men is the first in almost a year, and is aimed at ending years of bitter rivalry between the two groups.


Source: News Agencies, Edited by moqawama.org