Hamas: Egypt seeks reconciliation before truce is reached with Israel

Hamas said that Egypt is seeking an internal reconciliation between Palestinian factions before reaching a truce with Israel.

Senior Hamas leader Moussa Abu Marzouq told Ma’an that the Egyptian mediators prefer that a Palestinian reconciliation be achieved before a truce is reached with Israel, although they are not imposing this as a condition. “Their efforts continue in both directions in parallel as the issues are separate from one another,” he added.

“No member of the Fatah Central Committee dares to contact Hamas, even by mistake, so as to avoid [Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas] Abu Mazen’s anger,” Abu Marzouk said.

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He noted that the Egyptian intelligence chief is likely to visit Gaza next week.

Abu Marzouk also said that Hamas did not fire missiles last week, and it cannot fire rockets one day before the visit of the Egyptian minister at a time when an Egyptian delegation is preparing for a visit.

Once identified, the perpetrators will be arrested, he added.