Hamas insists on reconciliation agreement as a whole package

Delegations from the Palestinian Islamic Movement, Hamas, and Palestinian Liberation Movement, Fatah, met in the Gaza Strip on Sunday and discussed several issues regarding internal reconciliation.

The Fatah delegation suggested the holding of presidential and parliamentary elections, as well as elections for the Palestinian National Council. Hamas refuted this suggestion and insisting that all previously agreed to terms had to be carried out as one package.

In a meeting of both the movements on May 14 in Cairo, they had agreed to carry out previous agreements on reconciliation within three months, this agreement ended on August 14.

Hamas spokesman, Sami abu-Zuhri, said that Fatah had requested the meeting on Sunday. He said that his movement insisted that carrying out the terms of the agreement was the only measure that would guarantee ending the Palestinians divisions.

Abu-Zuhri also said that Fatah had proposed holding elections and confirmed that Hamas said that elections would be the last part of the agreement to be implemented as fulfilment of the other terms would prepare the situation for elections.

Abu-Zuhri also said that Fatah had proposed holding elections and confirmed that Hamas said that elections would be the last part of the agreement to be implemented as fulfilment of the other terms would prepare the situation for elections.

Fatah leader, Amin Maqboul, told the Palestinian Authority news agency Wafa, that Hamas had refused to carry out the elections as Fatah had requested. He said Hamas had insisted on carrying out the agreement as a whole.

Maqboul said that the Fatah delegation had raised the issue of the detention of its members in Gaza. He said that Hamas told them the detention of Fatah members in Gaza was connected to documents seized last month.

The interior security service in Gaza detained a Fatah member last month after it seized documents on his laptop which proved that the Palestinian Authority was complicit in the propaganda campaign against Hamas by the Egyptian media.