A high-ranking Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo on Wednesday following an invitation from Egyptian intelligence to discuss possible solutions to help move the Palestinian reconciliation forward.
Hamas deputy chief, Saleh al-Arouri, led the delegation which also included members from abroad Musa Abu Marzooq, Izat Resheg, and Husam Badran, as well as members from Gaza Khalil al-Hayya, and Rawhi Mushtaha
Hamas spokesman in Gaza, Fawzi Barhoum, said in a press statement that the visit of Hamas delegation was made in accordance to an official Egyptian invitation.
“The visit aims at promoting the bilateral ties, ending the siege that has been imposed on the Gaza Strip for 12 years and achieving a national unity in accordance to 2011 reconciliation agreement signed in Cairo,” Barhoum added.
A Fatah delegation is also expected to arrive in Cairo next week to discuss with Egyptian officials what they have reached with Hamas.
Fatah demands that Gaza Strip is fully handed over to the current government including security, crossings, tax collection, land authority and the judiciary, without any conditions.
But Hamas demands first lifting the sanctions on the Strip, forming a national unity government and recognizing its former employees as staff of the Palestinian Authority.
Cairo sees reconciliation a necessary step after enforcing the truce in Gaza and a way to reach a long agreement in Gaza through the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), similar to the agreement that ended the 2014 war.
Egyptian officials will discuss with Hamas handing over the Strip to the current government, in accordance with an agreed timetable, with the subsequent consultations to form a national unity government.
Egypt believes that paying salaries of Hamas employees through Qatar over the next six months has removed a major obstacle from both sides. The movement has previously asked to agree on specific payments to its employees rather than immediate integration or full salaries which was rejected by Fatah given that a specialized committee is working on it.
Egypt will suggest postponing the discussion of the issue of weapons of the resistance in Gaza till after “reforming” the PLO and holding elections with the participation of Hamas.
In addition, Cairo is considering launching an agreed timetable that could last for two months or more for the transfer of power, security, crossings, financial collection, the judiciary and the land authority, with the possibility of forming joint and specialized committees, in which Egypt could be part of.
This new move comes a week after Egypt set up a new truce in Gaza. Cairo fears that failure to achieve reconciliation will lead to war amid exchanged threats from both sides.
These threats came after a violent escalation, the worst since a 2014 war, between the Palestinians and Israel put the enclave on the brink of war. During the recent flare-up, 500 rockets were fired from Gaza Strip and Israel launched 160 raids on Hamas and Jihad locations.
Egypt wants to avoid another escalation; an effort which is shared by the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov.
Mladenov stated that Egypt holds the key to the political process to end the violence.
“We have been working with the Egyptians for a couple of years. We do not have a better partner anywhere in the Arab world than Egypt,” he asserted.
Speaking Wednesday at the Jerusalem Post annual conference, the UN Envoy indicated that there is a common understanding that going to war in Gaza now is against the interests of Israel, the Gaza people and against the best for the region.
“What I have seen is that no one wants a war in Gaza now. It is going to be damaging for everyone,” he noted.
