Thursday 24 March 2011

Haneyya says reconciliation calls to Abbas are pending

[ 23/03/2011 - 08:00 PM ]

GAZA, (PIC)-- Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haneyya has reiterated calls to the country's de facto president Mahmoud Abbas to come to the Gaza Strip to begin reconciliation talks tackling all national issues.

The calls were in response to demonstrations in the Gaza Strip and West Bank demanding an end to the Palestinian political split.

Abbas responded but set terms before heading to the Strip, saying talks should revolve around elections due to be held by September.

”We must place a time limit on talks and then agree on holding a national conference at home and abroad to explain the Palestinian issue,” Haneyya said during a visit to the home of Ahmed Yassin, marking seven years on his assassination by the Israeli occupation.

”The Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) must be reformed, and elections must be held for the Palestinian National Council (PNC) to achieve real elections,” he said.

He confirmed that his party Hamas believes that talks must precede reconciliation, adding that the Makkah accords proved that reconciliation without talks fails to bring desired results.

Meanwhile, Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) member Mushir al-Masri has called on Fatah to renounce terms it set and to start deadlined reconcilaition talks.

He said subsequent statements by Fatah have indicated the party's hesitancy regarding reconcilaition, and added that the continued arrests and military trials in the West Bank have raised questions about the seriousness of the party's recent calls for national dialogue.

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