Palestinian Authority rejects Qatari proposal

Palestinian Authority (PA) has rejected the Qatari emir's plans to hold a mini-Arab summit in Cairo for Palestinian reconciliation, claiming the proposal "undermines the unity of the Palestinian representation." Speaking at the 24th Arab League Summit in Doha last week, Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani urged Egypt to hold a conference to bring together Arab representatives and leaders from Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas, in a bid to push forward with Palestinian unity. However, the political adviser of PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, Nimer Hammad has claimed that any such summit would only hinder potential reconciliation. He told Palestinian news agency Wafa: "The call for any mini-Arab summit threatens to undermine the unity of the Palestinian representation, because in any such summit, there only needs to be a single reference to our people, and only one representative of the Palestinian people, be it official, regional, international, or ministerial." Hammad urged both Fatah and Hamas to implement proposals agreed between the two groups in Cairo and Doha. "The national reconciliation has gone to great lengths through dialogue among Palestinian factions which has been sponsored by Egypt, and the mechanisms and timing of this reconciliation are clear and specific, they just require implementation. "Any Arab effort in this direction should support the implementation of what was agreed upon in accordance with Cairo and Doha agreements aimed at ending division and achieving national unity," Hammad explained. Meanwhile, spokesperson of the Hamas government in Gaza Taher al-Nunu has accused America and Israel of forcing PA President Abbas to think twice about any potential Palestinian reconciliation. "America and Israel are putting pressure on the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, so that he turns away from the Palestinian reconciliation," al-Nunu argued. The spokesperson predicted that Abbas would reject the idea of a mini-Arab summit in Cairo because he fears that the upcoming elections may see major gains for Hamas. Elsewhere, Chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau, Khaled Meshaal has told Qatar's Sharq newspaper that he supports the emir of Qatar's plans to hold a mini-Arab summit to push forward with the Palestinian reconciliation, adding that he appreciates the Qatari  efforts for Palestinian unity.