Saleh and Fayyad discuss talks on inter-Palestinian feud

President Ali Abdullah Saleh and the Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad discussed efforts to hold reconciliation talks between the rival Palestinian movements Fatah and Hamas. During his meeting with President Saleh in Sana’a on Saturday August 9, Fayyad briefed Saleh on the situation in the Palestinian Territories and on the efforts being made to resume talks for achieving reconciliation and uniting the Palestinian factions.

Fayyad discussed with Saleh and other senior Yemeniofficials thoughts for implementing the Yemeni initiative that is intended to patch up the inter- Palestinian rift.

Fayyad reiterated that the Yemeni peace initiative is a base for accomplishing harmony and reconciliation between all the Palestinian factions, expressing the Palestinian leadership and people’s appreciation for President Saleh’s attitudes in support of the Palestinian issues and for his efforts to patch up the inter- Palestinian rift.

The two Palestinian groups have been locked in a bitter dispute since Hamas gunmen routed forces loyal to Fatah seized security control of the Gaza Strip in June 2007. 

Yemen managed to bring together negotiators from both sides in March for talks on a Yemeni plan to end their dispute. 

Fatah and Hamas accepted the Yemeni initiative, but disagreed later over the interpretation of the agreement. 

The talks were based on a seven-point plan proposed by Saleh to end the dispute between the Palestinian rivals and rebuild the shattered Palestinian Authority. 
 
The first criteria of the initiative stresses restoring the situation in Gaza back to what it was prior to the events of June 13, 2007. 

Hamas and Fatah broke ranks after fighters loyal to Hamas forcibly seized control of Gaza from Abbas' ruling Fatah party last June. The clashes between the two shattered a Saudi-sponsored Mecca deal brokered in February, when the two groups agreed to share power in a national unity government.

Hamas won the December 2006 Palestinian elections, but later its leaders differed with Abbas over power-sharing and peace with Israel. The struggle climaxed in June 2007, when Hamas took over Gaza, driving out forces loyal to Abbas, whose government now controls only the West Bank.

The initiative also proposes conducting an early election and resuming dialogue based on the Cairo 2005 Agreement and the Mecca 2007 Accord on the basis that the Palestinian people are one unit that cannot be separated and that the Palestinian authority consists of the elected presidential authority, the elected parliament and the executive authority, all of whom are represented in the national unity government.  

The initiative also urges a commitment to Palestinian legitimacy in all its components, including respect for the Palestinian constitution and law and compliance to its rules by all factions.  

Other criteria proposed by the initiative were the restructuring of Palestinian security institutions so that they would be affiliated with the supreme authority of the nation and a part of the national unity government. It also calls for Arab states, such as Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Jordan to form a council to oversee the implementation of the Yemeni plan.

The seven-clause plan calls on Hamas to end its Gaza takeover, rebuild the security apparatuses and schedule early presidential and legislative elections. 
Fatah wants an immediate implementation of the initiative, while Hamas movement insists that the plan only serve as the basis for talks to resolve issues.  Fayyad was appointed as acting prime minister by the US-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas after Hamas took over the Gaza Strip. 

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