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Gaza ceasefire talks adjourned for month, Fatah-Hamas to discuss differences
Israeli and Palestinian delegations in Cairo yesterday agreed to postpone talks on a long-lasting Gaza ceasefire until the last week of October, following upcoming Jewish and Muslim holidays.
An Egyptian-brokered open-ended truce on 26 August, which put an end to the 50-day Operation Protective Edge has held firm. However, the terms stipulated that Israel and Hamas, within a wider Palestinian delegation, would return to talks within a month in order to discuss longer-term issues regarding the Gaza Strip. Many outstanding issues remain including Israel’s request for the demilitarisation of the Gaza Strip and Hamas’s demand to construct an airport and sea port.
The two sides met yesterday in Cairo and the head of the Palestinian delegation, Azzam al-Ahmed said that negotiations will resume in the final week of October. This was confirmed by Egypt’s Foreign Ministry, which added that in the meantime, “both sides agreed to commit to the [current] truce and have presented their suggestions for discussing pending issues.” According to the Times of Israel, the Israeli delegation consisted of senior Defence Ministry official Amos Gilad, Shin Bet chief Yoram Cohen, and the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories Maj. Gen. Yoav Mordechai.
In the meantime though, the Palestinian delegation will devote itself to resolving internal issues between Hamas and the Fatah faction of Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas. The two sides disagree over the very future governance of Gaza and other issues such as the salaries of 40,000 Hamas government employees. Earlier this month, Abbas called for Hamas to respect “one authority, one gun, one law” under the PA or else risk Palestinian unity.
Al-Ahmed said that “reconciliation” talks will ensue and that in particular, both sides must agree on who is responsible for “making decisions about peace and war,” explaining that, “Fatah considers the decision over war and peace a national one and not a factional matter.” He added that Hamas must recognise that the Palestinian “national consensus” government under Abbas as binding.