Hamas, Fatah leaders to meet in Beijing this month for reconciliation talks

Political chief Ismail Haniyeh to lead Hamas delegation, Fatah group to be led by deputy head Mahmad Alul; China hosted the two groups in April

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh (third right), and top official Khalem Mashaal (second right), are seen meeting with Fatah's Nasser al-Qudwa (second left) and Samir al-Mashrawi (third left) in Qatar on November 22, 2023. (Courtesy)
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh (third right), and top official Khalem Mashaal (second right), are seen meeting with Fatah's Nasser al-Qudwa (second left) and Samir al-Mashrawi (third left) in Qatar on November 22, 2023. (Courtesy)

Senior officials from the Hamas terror group, which is at war with Israel, and Fatah, the Palestinian faction that governs the Palestinian Authority, have agreed to meet in Beijing this month in a renewed bid for reconciliation, officials said Monday.

The Hamas delegation is to be headed by its Qatar-based political chief Ismail Haniyeh, while the Fatah representation will be led by deputy head Mahmud Alul, Fatah sources said.

Hamas had no immediate comment.

The two groups have been bitter rivals since Hamas fighters ejected Fatah from the Gaza Strip after deadly clashes that followed Hamas’s resounding victory in a 2006 election.

Hamas then became the de facto government of the territory, until its ongoing war with Israel began on October 7 of last year, when thousands of terrorists invaded southern Israel from Gaza, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.

Israel responded with a major offensive in Gaza and has significantly degraded the group since then. The Israeli military continues to operate throughout the strip.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas leads a meeting of reconciliation talks between Fatah and Hamas in Egypt on July 30, 2023. (WAFA)

The reconciliation talks come as Israel and Hamas negotiate for a deal to release Israeli hostages in exchange for a ceasefire and release of Palestinian prisoners.

According to a report in the Washington Post last week, Israel and Hamas have agreed to hand over control of Gaza to a new Palestinian force during the crucial second stage of a proposed three-phase deal.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has so far rejected calls to include the PA in a post-Hamas Gaza, saying at one point that he would not “replace Hamastan with Fatahstan.” But he has reportedly been walking back his opposition in private.

Several previous reconciliation bids between Hamas and Fatah have failed, but calls have grown since October 7, with violence also soaring in the West Bank where Fatah is based.

A poll conducted at the end of May showed that Hamas is more than twice as popular as Fatah in the West Bank, with 41% of residents saying they support the terror group and only 17% saying they support Fatah.

In the Gaza Strip, support for Hamas today stands at 38% and support for Fatah at 24%, according to the same poll.

China hosted Fatah and Hamas in April but a meeting scheduled for June was postponed.

The representatives are to meet with Chinese officials in Beijing on July 20 and July 21, according to Fatah’s central committee deputy secretary general Sabri Saidam.

Before that, a meeting of the two groups could take place, he added.

The goal, said Saidam, “is to end the state of division with a commitment to past agreements and agreeing on a relationship between the Palestinian groups in the next stage.”

Another Fatah executive member also said a joint Fatah-Hamas meeting could be held in Beijing before the official agenda starts.

China has sought to present itself since the outbreak of the war as a more “neutral” arbiter between Israel and the Palestinians, compared to the United States.

Gianluca Pacchiani contributed to this report. 

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