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Nov 8, 2008 13:18 | Updated Nov 8, 2008 21:51
Egypt postpones Palestinian summit
By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
Egypt informed the various Palestinian factions over the weekend of its
decision to postpone indefinitely a long-awaited conference for solving the
dispute between Hamas and Fatah, Palestinian Authority officials said.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas Prime Minister Ismail
Haniyeh.
Photo: AP [file]
The decision came shortly after Hamas told the Egyptians that it would boycott
the conference, which was scheduled to open in Cairo on Sunday.
The Egyptians ordered representatives of various Palestinian factions who had
already arrived in Cairo for the parley to leave Egypt immediately. Twelve
Palestinian factions, including Hamas and Fatah, were expected to take part in
the conference, which was also being held under the auspices of the Arab
League.
Quoting top PA officials, The Jerusalem Post revealed Thursday that the
Egyptians were "seriously" considering postponing the conference following
threats by Hamas to stay away.
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The decision to call off the "national reconciliation" conference is seen by PA
officials in Ramallah as a severe blow to Egyptian efforts, with leaders who
have been working hard over the past year to end the crisis between Hamas and
Fatah.
A PA official told the Post Saturday that Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was
"furious" with Hamas for canceling its participation in the conference at the
last minute.
The official said that Mubarak had instructed his government to suspend all
contacts with Hamas and to keep the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza
Strip and Egypt closed until further notice.
"President Mubarak feels betrayed by Hamas," the official said, citing unnamed
Egyptian government representatives. "From now on we will see a rapid
deterioration in relations between Hamas and Egypt."
Another PA official in Ramallah predicted that the new crisis between Hamas and
Egypt would have a negative impact on efforts to release kidnapped IDF soldier
Gilad Schalit. Over the past two years, Egyptian Intelligence Chief Gen. Omar
Sulieman has been acting as a mediator between Hamas and Israel to secure
Schalit's release.
Hamas officials said the decision to boycott the conference was made in protest
the PA security forces' continued clampdown on its supporters in the West Bank.
They added that parts of the Egyptian initiative for solving the crisis with
Fatah were "totally unacceptable."
The initiative calls, among other things, for the establishment of a
Palestinian "unity" government, the reconstruction of the PA security forces so
that they would include members of all Palestinian factions and preparing for
holding new presidential and parliamentary elections in the West Bank and Gaza
Strip.
Hamas officials said they were recently surprised to learn that the Egyptians
were also trying to include the issue of PA President Mahmoud Abbas's term in
office in the conference's agenda. Although Abbas's time in office expires in
January 2009, he has made it clear that he intends to stay in power for at
least another year - a move strongly opposed by Hamas and other Palestinian
factions.
Mushir al-Masri, a Hamas spokesman in the Gaza Strip, accused Abbas's forces of
launching a massive crackdown on Hamas members in the West Bank in a bid to
foil the planned conference.
Last week Hamas released scores of Fatah detainees held in its prisons in the
Gaza Strip as a goodwill gesture on the eve of the Cairo discussions and urged
Abbas to reciprocate.
However, Abbas announced over the weekend that there are no Hamas detainees in
PA prisons in the West Bank. His announcement enraged Hamas leaders who
responded by publishing a list of dozens of Hamas "political" detainees who had
been arrested by Abbas's security forces in the past few months.
Masri said that Abbas's announcement was one of the reasons why Hamas decided
to boycott the Egyptian-sponsored gathering. He said another reason was Abbas's
decision to ban Hamas representatives in the West Bank from traveling to Egypt
for the conference.
Khalil al-Hayeh, a senior Hamas official in the Gaza Strip, linked between
Abbas's refusal to release Hamas detainees and US Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice's visit to Ramallah on Friday.
"Abbas is clearly under pressure from the Americans not to solve the dispute
[with Hamas]," he said. "This explains his false announcement last Friday that
there are no Hamas members in his prisons."
The two Hamas officials blamed Abbas and the PA security forces for the failure
of Egypt's mediation efforts and the cancellation of the conference.
They accused Abbas of lying to the Palestinian public by claiming that all
those who were detained by his forces were thieves and murderers.
In the first sign of increased tensions between Hamas and Egypt, the Islamic
movement organized a demonstration over the weekend in protest the continued
closure of the Rafah terminal. Hundreds of protesters shouted anti-Egyptian
slogans and accused Mubarak of participating in the blockade on the Gaza Strip.
Yahya Moussa, a Hamas legislator, said it was "shameful" that Egypt was
refusing to reopen the border.
"I call on the Egyptian leadership to draw conclusions from all the
developments that have been taking place in the world lately," he said. "Shame
on you that you are keeping the border crossing closed for your Palestinian
brothers."
In separate incidents over the past two weeks, the Egyptian authorities banned
a Hamas delegation from crossing the border into Egypt and a European team of
parliament members from entering the Gaza Strip.
PA officials reacted angrily to the postponement of the conference and held
Hamas responsible.
PA Prime Minister Salaam Fayad denied that the PA was holding Hamas members for
political reasons and said the decision to call off the intra-Palestinian
discussions was unjustified.
"The postponement does not serve the Palestinian cause," he said. "We are in
dire need to end the divisions between the two parts of the homeland."
Yasser Abed Rabbo, a top PLO official and Abbas adviser, said Hamas's decision
was taken under pressure from "regional powers" - an apparent reference to Iran
and Syria - to foil Egypt's mediation efforts.
"President Abbas and the PLO leadership deeply regret Hamas's decision, which
is harmful to the Palestinian cause," he said.
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