Palestinian unity government to be announced in the middle of this week

Hamas senior leader Mousa Abu-Marzouq said on Friday that the obstacles facing the unity government will be overcome in two days and the government will be announced in the middle of this week.

Speaking at a meeting in the Gaza city of Rafah, Abu-Marzouq said that there are two obstacles before the unity government is announced; the ministry of prisoners and the foreign minister Riyad al-Maliki.

“It impossible to abolish the ministry of prisoners, which serves thousands of prisoners and freed prisoners,” Abu-Marzouq said. “We cannot ignore their rights and our duties towards them,” he added.

Abu-Marzouq said that Hamas does not want Al-Maliki because of the remarks he made during the Israeli offensive on Gaza in 2012.

Al-Maliki blamed Hamas for the offensive when Israel started it by assassinating Ahmed Al-Ja’bari, the Hamas leader who was in charge of running truce talks with Israeli officials through Egyptian mediators.

Abu-Marzouq said that Fatah and Palestinian Authority President (PA) Mahmoud Abbas is afraid that America will stop financial assistance should the PA not dissolve the ministry of prisoners.

“American aid is not a means of pressure,” Abu-Marzouq said. “The PA is entitled to this aid for its obligations based on the Oslo Accords.” He reiterated that there has been an American veto on the reconciliation, through pressure applied to the PA since 2009.

Abu-Marzouq recognised that foreign aid is accepted to some extent since Palestinians are not fully independent. He insisted: “They must not be a sword on our necks.”

He continued: “The important thing for Hamas is that the Palestinians do not divide, but remain united. We seek to position the people on a united national path. Even if they have different political programmes, they still have much in common.”