8 Palestinian factions withdraw from Cairo talks

Informed Palestinian sources told ‘Arabstoday’ that eight Palestinian factions withdrew from the dialogue session held at 11 am in the Egyptian capital, after the head of the reconciliation delegationand Fatah leader Azam al-Ahmed refused to include them in the meeting, as they do not belong to the PLO. Sources stated that the factions that withdrew included:  the Popular Resistance Movement, Popular Resistance Committees, Al-Ahrar Movement, Fatah al-Intifada, Saaqa faction, and Palestinian Popular Struggle Front (Nidal Front). The Popular Resistance Movement announced, today, its withdrawal from the dialogue held in Cairo, which Palestinian factions and forces agreed to participate in. Spokesman Khaled el-Azbat explained that the Popular Resistance decided to withdraw, following al-Ahmed’s refusal to include some Gaza factions in the dialogue, the Popular Resistance Movement being one of them, while taking in all factions from the PLO. The Movement said in a statement, copied to ‘Arabstoday’, concerning Fatah’s determination to exclude eight Palestinian factions from the dialogue to implement the reconciliation, and engaging the PLO to play a historic role as a representative of the Palestinian people, that “Such position puts question marks on Fatah’s true stance toward the reconciliation, as the position itself enhances the state of division.” The statement stressed that the position adopted by Fatah attests to a lack of sincerity of intentions to end the division and achieve reconciliation, calling on resistance factions, particularly Hamas and Islamic Jihad, to take action that confirms the participation of resistance factions, which have offered martyrs and worked diligently as part of the resistance to defend the Palestinian people’s legitimate rights.