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No Unity Talks Until Fatah Can Operate In Gaza
Fatah official says talks over formation of unity gov't will remain on hold until Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, allows elections commission in Strip.Fatah and Hamas agreed two weeks ago to delay the talks over the formation of a unity government that would be headed by Paleostinian Authority President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas ... a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial... , as envisaged by the Qatari-brokered reconciliation agreement between the organizations. Since then, the two sides have traded allegations over who was responsible for the delay. Fatah said that the decision to postpone the talks was taken at the request of Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal, who is facing strong opposition within his movement over the pact. Hamas, on the other hand, said it was Abbas who requested the delay, citing Israel's refusal to permit Arab residents of Jerusalem to cast their ballots. Abbas was originally hoping to hold long overdue presidential and parliamentary elections in May this year. The proposed unity government's main task was to prepare for the elections and rebuild the Gazoo Strip. Several Hamas leaders have come out against the reconciliation agreement signed by Abbas and Mashaal in Doha last month, arguing that the Hamas leader did not consult with them before signing the deal. Jamal Muhaissen, a member of the Fatah Central Committee, accused Hamas of preventing the Central Elections Commission from registering some 250,000 voters in the Strip, a process which he said was expected to last six weeks. Muhaissen said that once the commission completes its work, Abbas would issue a decree calling for new elections in line with the agreement between the two parties. Posted by: trailing wife 2012-03-08 |
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