Palestine Think Tank

GAZA, (PIC)– Palestinian Prime Minister Ismael Haneyya has stressed on Tuesday that the Hamas Movement was going to the Palestinian national dialogue with open heart and mind, and that the hand of Hamas was and still is open for national reconciliation.

“We look at the upcoming Palestinian national dialogue in Cairo with open hearts and minds as we hope we could overcome and end the Palestinian internal division, which is the handy work of a certain Palestinian trend attached to the Israeli and US interests and works against the will of the Palestinian people”, Haneyya underlined as he addressed tens of thousands of Palestinian citizens gathered for Eid Al-Fitr prayers.

He reiterated his government’s stand that the dialogue must be unconditional, and without dictates from foreign parties with the aim to blackmail Hamas, underscoring that the dialogue must be held on healthy basis.

“Anyone who thinks he could transform the dialogue into a court for the Palestinian people and their democratic choice is indeed wrong as we won’t deal with the dialogue based on such proposition”, Haneyya pointed out, stressing that the national dialogue must be based on the national harmony document, the Cairo understandings, and the Makka accord.

He also emphasized that it was about time for regional and international parties to accept the new changes in the political balance in the Palestinian arena, adding, “Whoever wants to block those political changes, he is indeed colliding with the political will of the Palestinian people”.

“The political change that had happened in the Palestinian arena was true and natural change as Hamas Movement was founded four decades ago, and offered the first row of its senior leaders (as martyrs); and thus, what had happened couldn’t just be finished by the end of the four years (of the Hamas-led PA government).

He also urged the international community not to deal with Hamas as political party, but he added, they should deal with it as the “choice of the Palestinian people” because, he explained, “Hamas came to power through the democratic will of the Palestinian people and the elections that you (the international community) had called for.

Moreover, Haneyya underlined that condemnations to the Israeli economic blockade on the Palestinian people in Gaza were no longer effective, stressing that the world must move immediately to practically break the siege.

“We are no longer satisfied or convinced with the calls to end the blockade… what we need are practical steps to break the siege once and for all and to bail the Palestinian people out of the big jail where 1.5 million individuals are living in”, the Palestinian premier highlighted.

Finally, Haneyya called on the PA leadership in Rammalh city to end political detention, explaining that his government has taken the first step in this regard, and released tens of Fatah cadres, urging the Ramallah-based PA leadership to reciprocate the step.

“We are not proud to have a single political detainee in any Palestinian jail, but unfortunately our gesture of goodwill wasn’t reciprocated by the others despite persisting calls to end oppression in the West Bank”, Haneyya asserted.

Palestine Information Centre

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