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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Egypt delays Palestinian unity deal deadline |
| 2009-10-17 |
| [Al Arabiya Latest] Egypt delayed the signing of a deal to heal the rift between President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement and the rival Palestinian Islamist group Hamas because of "new complications," an Egyptian official said on Friday. He cited the growing tension between Fatah and Hamas over the handling by Abbas of a U.N. report criticising the Israeli military offensive into Gaza in December and January. Cairo had slated a signing ceremony for October 25. The agreement would resolve nothing immediately but would outline steps to restore Palestinian unity. Hamas runs the Gaza Strip and Fatah dominates in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. The announcement came a day after Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas's Fatah party presented a signed copy of the deal on Egypt's deadline, with Hamas saying it wanted an extension and amendments to the deal. The official cited the "repercussions between the Palestinian Authority and Hamas because of the dispute on handling the Goldstone report," referring to the controversy over a damning UN report on the Gaza war at the turn of the year. The official did not give a new deadline for wrapping up the deal, which would lead to a general election agreed on by both Fatah and Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip. Hamas had accused Fatah of "betraying" the Palestinian victims of the conflict after the Palestinian delegation at the UN Human Rights Council agreed to have a vote on the report deferred. The council has taken up the report again, and is expected to vote on Friday on whether to endorse it. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 Palestinian unity is an oxymoron---like Islamic empathy. |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2009-10-17 07:20 |