» 02/06/2012 09:55 PALESTINE Fatah and Hamas reach agreement, Abbas to lead "technical government" to elections The official announcement should come today. The elections, due to take place in May, should put an end to a division that has lasted since 2006 and sees Hamas govern Gaza and Fatah the West Bank.
Beirut (AsiaNews) - Hamas and Fatah have reached an agreement for PNA president, Mamoud Abbas, to lead a government of "technicians" until Palestinian legislative and presidential elections. The vote, according to the terms of the "reconciliation" reached in April, should be held next May.
The announcement of the agreement was made this morning by an official who took part in the talks, held in Doha, Qatar, between Abbas and Hamas political leaderr, Khaled Meshal (pictured together). The source said there should be an official announcement today.
The elections should put an end to a division that has continued since the 2006 elections and the riots that followed them, after which Hamas has ruled in the Gaza Strip and Fatah the West Bank.
"We quickly agreed on the importance of keeping the elections," said Azzam al-Ahm, a spokesman for Abbas, Fatah, who has accompanied the talks, who stressed "the desire to remove all obstacles to delay the vote."
Azzam al-Ahm said that Fatah and Hamas have agreed also on "major issues" that were on the table. According to the same Azzam al-Ahmad in recent comments to Qatari news agency QNA, theses include the stalemate in peace talks with Israel and a "wide range of issues" related to reconciliation between the two movements .
