BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Egypt intends to intervene in the implementation of a reconciliation deal between Hamas and Fatah, the country's ambassador to the Palestinian Authority said Sunday.
Yasser Othman told Ma'an that Egypt "intends to take its intervention to the top leaders level because that will be the best way to overcome obstacles and problems facing the reconciliation sub-committees."He added that the sub-committees’ performance has not met expectations, as no major achievements have been made. Thus, all parties will be invited to convene in Cairo in February to try and overcome those obstacles, the ambassador said.
"A detailed plan will be set to address each obstacle and how to overcome it," he said.
It was agreed that Egypt will send a high-ranking security delegation to both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip after mid-January, but the Egyptians delayed it because neither Hamas nor Fatah committed to what was agreed in Cairo.
The West Bank and Gaza have been governed by rival administrations since 2007 when Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip, a year after it won elections. Fatah dominates the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank.
After Hamas and Fatah party chiefs met in November to kick start the stalled deal, several cross-party committees were formed to implement terms of the agreement, including the release of political detainees held by both sides.
Hamas, Fatah exchange accusations
Hamas and Fatah, meanwhile, continue to exchange accusations concerning a lack of commitment to the reconciliation deal, which was signed in Cairo in May 2011.
Fatah spokesman Ahmad Assaf said Saturday that “evidence on the ground show that Hamas hasn’t fulfilled anything of the Cairo agreement.”
And Hamas released its own statement accusing Fatah of undermining the terms of the reconciliation agreement by continuing to detain its party affiliates in the West Bank.
Assaf said Hamas continues to detain Fatah activists and denies West Bank Fatah members entry to the Gaza Strip, while failing to reopen bureau's as agreed in the May 2011 reconciliation deal.
The Hamas government in Gaza refuses to open Palestinian Central Elections commission offices and still controls the main headquarters of the PLO, despite agreeing to join the organization, Assaf said.
The umbrella body is currently under a temporary leadership, formed from leaders of all the factions, in anticipation of elections to the PLO parliament.
Fatah offices in the coastal enclave are still under Hamas control and have been closed the political split in 2007, he added.
A Hamas statement said Palestinian Authority security forces have detained five Hamas supporters in Nablus and Bethlehem and summoned several members for interrogation. It did not specify when the arrests were made.
“Despite the talks about reconciliation and about halting political detentions and interrogations, the PA’s security services in the West Bank continue with their systematic policy against Hamas’ supporters," the statement said.
