Divided over policy towards Israel and control of Gaza reconstruction aid, rival Palestinian factions face tough obstacles in unity talks due to open in Cairo on Tuesday.On the eve of the negotiations, slated to last 10 days, officials loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah faction and the Hamas Islamist movement that rules the Gaza Strip were united in a singular message: chances for success are slim.
Five committees were set to tackle issues at the heart of Palestinian reconciliation: formation of a unity government and restructuring the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) to include Hamas, now a political and military powerhouse.Palestinian political analysts said Hamas agreed to the talks to try to overcome its isolation by the West over the group's refusal to recognise Israel, renounce violence and accept existing interim peace deals.Western-backed Abbas, the analysts said, was seeking to minimise inter-factional friction, aware Fatah could be weakened if peace talks with Israel went nowhere under what appears likely to be a new right-wing led by Benjamin Netanyahu.
"We must reach an agreement to form a government of reconciliation that will abide by the obligations of the PLO," Abbas told reporters on Sunday.He was referring to the organisation's interim peace agreements that envisage the creation of a Palestinian state alongside a secure Israel, a blueprint that Netanyahu has not accepted publicly.Hamas opposes the U.S.-backed peace process, offering instead a long-term truce with Israel that falls short of recognition of the Jewish state.
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