Egypt’s role in bridging 10-year gap between Hamas, Fatah

CAIRO – 17 September 2017: “Egypt has gone to great lengths when Hamas announced dissolving its Gaza-based administrative committee as an initiative to resume reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas,” Mohamed Rachid, former advisor to late President Yasser Arafat, tweeted on Sunday.



Mohamed Rachid tweet 17 September 2017


Egypt welcomes the efforts of Palestinian movements Hamas and Fatah to participate in the Egypt-brokered inter-Palestinian reconciliation.

The Egyptian authorities have succeeded in ending the 10-year dispute between Fatah and Hamas, thereby proving Egypt’s indispensable role in the Palestinian case.

Egypt reaffirms its continued efforts to contact President Mahmoud Abbas and all Palestinian factions to serve the public interest.

The Hamas movement announced on Sunday the dissolving of the administrative committee at Gaza Strip, inviting the Government of National Reconciliation to assume its duties and hold general elections. The movement affirmed it would comply with the Social Reconciliation Accord signed with Fatah in 2011.

The Social Reconciliation Accord in Cairo aimed to restore unity among Palestinian political actors in 2011 following four years of conflict since 2007. It was inked by the Egyptian authority in 2009, and was accepted by the two parties in May 2011 following Palestinian demonstrations.

Hamas and Fatah are beginning a dialogue and forming a national, united government.
Earlier this year, Hamas announced forming an administrative committee in the Gaza Strip, and the Palestinian authorities at the time accused Hamas of attempting to form a shadow government and an independent state in Gaza.




Hamas's Political Bureau Leader Ismail Haniya- Press Photo


The new head of the Hamas political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, arrived in Cairo on September 10 to meet with a number of Egyptian officials to discuss inter-Palestinian reconciliation and the situation of the Gaza people, according to Hamas’ statement issued on Sunday.

On September 8, the

Islamic Jihad Movement

organized a march in Gaza calling on Egypt to resume reconciliation efforts. The Islamic Jihad Movement’s leader Khalid al-Batsh gave a speech, announcing six demands from the concerned parties to resume the mediation between Fatah and Hamas, including calling on Egypt to resume its efforts to achieve the inter-Palestine reconciliation and demanding that Hamas dissolves the administrative committee that it had formed to run Gaza affairs.

The Social Reconciliation accord in Cairo 2011 aimed to restore unity among Palestinian political actors following four years of conflict. It was inked by the Egyptian authority in 2009, and was accepted by the two parties in May 2011 following Palestinian demonstrations.

Seven previous reconciliation attempts between Fatah and Hamas since 2007 have failed, including the Fatah-Hamas Doha talks in 2012.




President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi recieves Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Cairo in March 2017- Press Photo


Credible Palestinian sources disclosed to the pan-Arab Al-Hayat newspaper on Thursday that President Mahmoud Abbas has been angered by several domestic and international parties, including the U.S. Administration. They said he is currently studying several political and diplomatic options such as heading to the UN General Assembly to grant Palestine full membership.

The sources added that the options also include dissolving the Palestinian Authority (PA), including the government and the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC/ parliament) and other institutions, and returning all power to the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), especially its executive committee, which might become the sole executive authority.

Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi proposed an initiative to his Palestinian counterpart Abbas during Abbas' latest visit to Egypt around one month ago, media reports revealed.

Sisi's initiative, which was approved by Hamas without reservation, includes six items. The six items state, most importantly, dissolving the government administrative committee formed by Hamas. Abbas would subsequently cancel all his punitive measures and decisions against the Gaza Strip and Hamas “without exception.”