Egypt has invited leaders of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) to Cairo for talks on easing tensions between the Palestinians and Israel, and achieving Palestinian unity.
The invitation came shortly after Abbas Kamel, Director of the Egyptian General Intelligence Directorate, last week visited Ramallah, where he met with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and senior PA officials.
Kamel was accompanied by Ahmad Husni, Director of the Jordanian General Intelligence Directorate.
On Saturday, PIJ Secretary-General Ziyad al-Nakhaleh met in Cairo with Kamel “to discuss the latest developments in Jerusalem and the West Bank, especially the city of Jenin,” Islamic Jihad said in a statement.
Jihad gunmen have a strong presence both in Jenin and Nablus, where they have formed armed groups over the past year. The gunmen were also responsible for several terror attacks against Israeli soldiers and civilians in the northern West Bank.
“The two sides also discussed bilateral relations, Egyptian efforts to ease the suffering of the Palestinian people and ways of restoring Palestinian unity,” according to the statement, which added that the talks were held in a “positive atmosphere.”
It added that the two sides agreed to continue contact and consultations on all issues related to the Palestinian cause and the situation in the West Bank and Jerusalem.
Hamas' Ismail Haniyeh to arrive in Egypt this week
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who is based in Qatar, is also scheduled to arrive in Cairo this week for talks with Kamel and other Egyptian security officials on ways of preserving the calm in the Gaza Strip and easing tensions in the West Bank and Jerusalem, especially ahead of Ramadan, which begins on March 22.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said that Haniyeh’s visit to Cairo will continue the contacts between the Gaza-based terror group and Egypt and will focus on the “ongoing Israeli attacks against the Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem and the continuing killings in the West Bank,” Qassem said.
In recent years, the Egyptians have made several attempts to end the dispute between the ruling Fatah faction headed by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas. They have also played a major role in brokering a number of ceasefires between Israel and the Palestinian terror groups in the Gaza Strip.
Abbas has renewed his call for achieving Palestinian unity and ending the Fatah-Hamas rivalry. Palestinian sources said last week that Abbas discussed the issue with the head of the Egyptian intelligence agency during their meeting in Ramallah.
When the Palestinian leadership announced on January 26 its decision to end security coordination with Israel, it said Abbas invited “all Palestinian political forces for an emergency meeting to agree on a comprehensive, united national vision to confront the Israeli aggression and respond to it.”
PLO Executive Committee Secretary-General Hussein al-Sheikh said that in another meeting of the Palestinian leadership on Friday, Abbas “renewed his call to the Palestinian factions for a comprehensive dialogue and to develop mechanisms, perceptions and strategies to strengthen the internal front and end the division [between the West Bank and Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip].”