Palestinian factions are to meet in Cairo on Sunday in the latest round of reconciliation talks towards a unity government despite pessimism from the Palestinian people.
A source close to the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority government told The National that the meeting would not be likely to draw many high-level figures as the factions, mainly rivals Fatah and Hamas, are expected to send mid-level delegates to talk about the sticking points on forming a consensus government.
The Palestinian Authority has been seeking to revive an initiative that consists of several factions, including Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ).
The meeting in Cairo, called by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, comes days after he twice met Hamas's political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in Ankara – one together and a second with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
“Both the President and Hamas leader already met before the Cairo gathering to hold preliminary discussions on possible breakthroughs to form a consensus government and attempt to heal their rift,” the source said.
In addition to Hamas and the PIJ, the leaders of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) have also been invited to the meeting, the source said.
The first Palestinian unity government, formed in 2007, was headed by Mr Haniyeh, who was fired by Mr Abbas in June that year. A month later, Hamas staged a coup against the Palestinian Authority and seized control of the entire Gaza Strip and has ruled it since.
The Cairo meeting is also expected to mainly focus on the challenges facing the Palestinian cause following the 48-hour attack by Israel on the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank this month.
The meeting is expected to last a day, one source close to Hamas told The National, drawing criticism from political analysts who say that it may not be enough time to reach an agreement.
A source close to Hamas said that the meeting in Ankara earlier this week between Mr Abbas and Mr Haniyeh was mediated by Mr Erdogan, who maintains good relations with both parties and attempted to get the sides to compromise on several issues.
Following this week’s meetings, Fatah representative Hussein Hamayel said that Mr Abbas gave the “green light to everything related to ending the division and facilitating work on the issue of national unity”.
“Anything that is in the interest of the Palestinian people will be a priority for the leadership ... The broad item of the Cairo meetings is the issue of ending the division, and any step that leads to ending it, including the issue of a national unity government, a national programme, and an agreed-upon political programme,” Mr Hamayel said in a statement.
However, Fatah leaders have stuck to their stipulation that both Hamas and the PIJ, which are based in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, publicly recognise the Palestine Liberation Organisation as the sole representative of the Palestinian people – a sticking point between the factions.
Pessimism on a breakthrough, however, still pervades as analysts say the Palestinian street does not expect any major announcement following Sunday’s meeting. Palestinian factions have met several times over the past decade.
They also met in Algeria last October, where both rival factions signed the Algiers Declaration, pledging to hold elections within a year.
Ghaith Al Omari, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy who is a former adviser to the Palestinian negotiating team and held several positions in the Palestinian Authority, said he believes the meeting in Cairo will not bring about major results, especially in light of long-standing sticking points that are existential for Hamas.
“I don’t see anything new in the factions meeting which isn’t the first – they’ve met before – but there isn’t a change in the political position that allows a real reconciliation among the different sides,” Mr Al Omari said.
He said “stranger things have happened” than a scenario where Hamas becomes a part of the PLO without recognising a unified charter which acknowledges Israel's existence as a state.
Another major roadblock challenging the success of negotiations in the meeting in Cairo is the boycott of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad militant group that said it would boycott the meeting.
PIJ leader Ziyad Al Nakhalah said he objected to the Palestinian Authority's arrests of its members in the West Bank, saying those hindered the success of the general secretaries' meeting to be held in Cairo.
This month, Israeli forces conducted a two-day raid on the Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank, razing large parts of the area and killing 12 Palestinians, including PIJ militants and children.
“An additional obstacle in realising Palestinian unity revolves around the PIJ. Currently, the PIJ plays a significant role in the armed uprising in the West Bank. This poses a further challenge to any potential reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas,” Nasser Khdour, a political analyst focused on Palestinian-Israeli dynamics, told The National.
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Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
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The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
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The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
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Brief scores:
Everton 0
Leicester City 1
Vardy 58'
Sun jukebox
Rufus Thomas, Bear Cat (The Answer to Hound Dog) (1953)
This rip-off of Leiber/Stoller’s early rock stomper brought a lawsuit against Phillips and necessitated Presley’s premature sale to RCA.
Elvis Presley, Mystery Train (1955)
The B-side of Presley’s final single for Sun bops with a drummer-less groove.
Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two, Folsom Prison Blues (1955)
Originally recorded for Sun, Cash’s signature tune was performed for inmates of the titular prison 13 years later.
Carl Perkins, Blue Suede Shoes (1956)
Within a month of Sun’s February release Elvis had his version out on RCA.
Roy Orbison, Ooby Dooby (1956)
An essential piece of irreverent juvenilia from Orbison.
Jerry Lee Lewis, Great Balls of Fire (1957)
Lee’s trademark anthem is one of the era’s best-remembered – and best-selling – songs.
Scores in brief:
Day 1
New Zealand (1st innings) 153 all out (66.3 overs) - Williamson 63, Nicholls 28, Yasir 3-54, Haris 2-11, Abbas 2-13, Hasan 2-38
Pakistan (1st innings) 59-2 (23 overs)
Honeymoonish
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Know your cyber adversaries
Cryptojacking: Compromises a device or network to mine cryptocurrencies without an organisation's knowledge.
Distributed denial-of-service: Floods systems, servers or networks with information, effectively blocking them.
Man-in-the-middle attack: Intercepts two-way communication to obtain information, spy on participants or alter the outcome.
Malware: Installs itself in a network when a user clicks on a compromised link or email attachment.
Phishing: Aims to secure personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers.
Ransomware: Encrypts user data, denying access and demands a payment to decrypt it.
Spyware: Collects information without the user's knowledge, which is then passed on to bad actors.
Trojans: Create a backdoor into systems, which becomes a point of entry for an attack.
Viruses: Infect applications in a system and replicate themselves as they go, just like their biological counterparts.
Worms: Send copies of themselves to other users or contacts. They don't attack the system, but they overload it.
Zero-day exploit: Exploits a vulnerability in software before a fix is found.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Key facilities
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- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
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Engine: 8.0-litre, quad-turbo 16-cylinder
Transmission: 7-speed auto
0-100kmh 2.3 seconds
0-200kmh 5.5 seconds
0-300kmh 11.6 seconds
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On sale: now
Company%20profile
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How to report a beggar
Abu Dhabi – Call 999 or 8002626 (Aman Service)
Dubai – Call 800243
Sharjah – Call 065632222
Ras Al Khaimah - Call 072053372
Ajman – Call 067401616
Umm Al Quwain – Call 999
Fujairah - Call 092051100 or 092224411
Brief scores:
Kashima Antlers 0
River Plate 4
Zuculini 24', Martinez 73', 90 2', Borre 89' (pen)
MATCH INFO
Northern Warriors 92-1 (10 ovs)
Russell 37 no, Billings 35 no
Team Abu Dhabi 93-4 (8.3 ovs)
Wright 48, Moeen 30, Green 2-22
Team Abu Dhabi win by six wickets
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
Jetour T1 specs
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Tips from the expert
Dobromir Radichkov, chief data officer at dubizzle and Bayut, offers a few tips for UAE residents looking to earn some cash from pre-loved items.
- Sellers should focus on providing high-quality used goods at attractive prices to buyers.
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Tips for taking the metro
- set out well ahead of time
- make sure you have at least Dh15 on you Nol card, as there could be big queues for top-up machines
- enter the right cabin. The train may be too busy to move between carriages once you're on
- don't carry too much luggage and tuck it under a seat to make room for fellow passengers
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Three tips from La Perle's performers
1 The kind of water athletes drink is important. Gwilym Hooson, a 28-year-old British performer who is currently recovering from knee surgery, found that out when the company was still in Studio City, training for 12 hours a day. “The physio team was like: ‘Why is everyone getting cramps?’ And then they realised we had to add salt and sugar to the water,” he says.
2 A little chocolate is a good thing. “It’s emergency energy,” says Craig Paul Smith, La Perle’s head coach and former Cirque du Soleil performer, gesturing to an almost-empty open box of mini chocolate bars on his desk backstage.
3 Take chances, says Young, who has worked all over the world, including most recently at Dragone’s show in China. “Every time we go out of our comfort zone, we learn a lot about ourselves,” she says.
