Hamas delegation heads to Egypt for talks

Palestinian Fatah movement leader Azzam Al-Ahmad (R) and Deputy Chairman of the Movement’s Political Bureau Saleh Al-Arouri (L) in Cairo, Egypt on 12 October 2017 [Ahmed Gamil/Anadolu Agency]

A delegation of Palestinian group Hamas set out for Cairo from the blockaded Gaza Strip on Saturday to hold talks with Egyptian officials, Anadolu Agency reports.

A statement by the media office of the Rafah border crossing reported the departure of the Hamas delegation, without giving further details.

The delegation includes Khalil al-Hayya, Hamas deputy leader in Gaza, and other leading members, a Palestinian source close to Hamas said.

In mid-August, Palestinian factions met with Egyptian officials in Cairo to discuss proposals for Hamas-Fatah reconciliation, a ceasefire with Israel, and the implementation of humanitarian projects in Gaza.

Last October, Hamas and Fatah signed a reconciliation agreement in Cairo that would — if implemented — allow the Ramallah-based Palestinian government to administer Gaza, which has been run by Hamas since 2007.

The agreement, however, has yet to come into effect due to a host of deep-seated differences — some of them ideological — between the two rival factions.

READ: Egyptian delegation tells Hamas Israel wants an end to demonstrations

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