Shtayyeh says next stage requires unity talks; Hamas: Must be national consensus

In a statement to the cabinet announcing his resignation, Palestinian Authority President Mohammad Shtayyeh says the next stage will have to take into account the emerging reality in war-torn Gaza.

The next stage will “require new governmental and political arrangements that take into account the emerging reality in the Gaza Strip, the national unity talks, and the urgent need for an inter-Palestinian consensus,” says Shtayyeh.

In addition, it will require “the extension of the Authority’s authority over the entire land, Palestine.”

A senior Hamas official says the move has to be followed by a broader agreement on governance for the Palestinians.

“The resignation of Shtayyeh’s government only makes sense if it comes within the context of national consensus on arrangements for the next phase,” senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri tells Reuters.

Shtayyeh’s resignation is seen as coming under pressure from the US to reform the PA, which would allow it take a greater role in ruling postwar Gaza. The US has ruled out Hamas playing any such role in the Strip in the future.