The Palestinian movement Hamas has officially confirmed a meeting with representatives of the Fatah movement in Cairo.
According to a statement posted on Hamas' official Telegram channel, “A meeting between a Hamas delegation, led by [politburo member] Khalil al-Hayya, and Fatah representatives began some time ago in Cairo.” Taher Nunu, spokesman for the head of Hamas’ political bureau, said the talks will focus on the latest developments in Gaza, as well as “coordinating efforts and achieving unity within the Palestinian ranks.” Hamas claimed that the Fatah delegation is headed by Mahmoud al-Aloul, deputy chairman of Fatah's central committee.
Earlier, Sky News Arabia reported that Fatah and Hamas, during the first day of consultations in Cairo, allegedly agreed to establish a committee to manage the Gaza Strip. The network said that on the second day of discussions, the two Palestinian factions would explore the details of forming and operating the new committee.
On October 8, the Palestinian news agency Maan reported that the Hamas delegation had arrived in the Egyptian capital to meet with Fatah representatives to discuss reconciliation between the factions and “to reach agreements on Palestinian unity.”
The agency noted that after bilateral talks between Hamas and Fatah, a broader meeting involving other Palestinian movements and groups was scheduled to take place, supervised by Egyptian authorities.
In 2005, Israel, as part of its unilateral disengagement plan, fully withdrew its military forces from the Gaza Strip and evacuated Jewish settlements. Control of the area was transferred to the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) under President Mahmoud Abbas, who also governed the West Bank. However, in the first Palestinian parliamentary elections, the radical Hamas movement won, leading to a conflict with the more moderate Fatah party and a division between the factions. Hamas took full control of Gaza, while Fatah retained power over the West Bank.
Recently, Abbas and his supporters have regularly expressed their desire to restore the PNA's jurisdiction over Gaza, but Hamas has so far resisted these efforts.
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Based on TASS materials