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Palestinian unity cabinet 99 percent ready: Abbas
 GAZA CITY - Ineffectual Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said on Thursday that a government of national unity with the Islamist Hamas movement is 99 percent ready and could be unveiled next week. Beginning on Monday the ministers will be designated, as we have completed 99 percent of different dossiers in the unity government, Abbas said during a meeting with prime minister-designate Ismail Haniya of Hamas in Gaza city.
Abbas and Haniya have met several times over the past week to shoot hammer out details of a unity cabinet, with one of the sticking points being who will serve in the key post of interior minister. Under the terms of the power-sharing agreement reached in Saudi Arabia last month, Hamas will occupy nine cabinet seats plus the premiership and their blood erstwhile rivals Fatah will take six.
Hamas will nominate another three independent ministers and Fatah two. The radical Islamist movement will also name an interior minister whose candidature must be approved by Abbas.
| Since that will be the minister who controls the 'interior' police. |
Abbas tasked Haniya with forming the new cabinet on February 15. He has five weeks to select the new line-up and win parliamentary approval for a government that Palestinians plead hope wistfully will end international embargoes and deadly infighting.
Posted by: Steve White 2007-03-09 |
