Hamas benefits from the chance to ride the coattails of Fatah's undeserved "moderate" reputation. Fatah benefits from momentarily neutralizing its rival, and having recourse to (and plausible deniability for) the services of a group that continues to fire at will at Israel. And if they can keep the deal up, both benefit from the ability to combine forces and methods to attempt to chip away at Israel. An update on this story. "Palestinian rivals Hamas and Fatah sign reconciliation deal," from the Guardian, May 4:
The rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas have signed a landmark reconciliation pact aimed at ending their bitter four-year rift.
A ceremony marking the deal, which was mediated by Egypt, took place on Wednesday at the Egyptian intelligence headquarters in Cairo.
Speaking at the ceremony, the Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal said his faction was "ready to pay any price" for reconciliation among Palestinians, the Arabic satellite channel al-Arabiya reported.
The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, said the accord ended "four black years" that hurt national Palestinian interests. He also said at the ceremony that he would soon visit the Hamas-held Gaza Strip.
"We announce to Palestinians that we turn forever the black page of division," he said.
The pact provides for the creation of a joint caretaker Palestinian government before national elections next year.
Critics have cast doubt on the durability of the Egyptian-brokered accord, which has been denounced by Israel.
The deal calls for the formation of an interim government to run the occupied West Bank, where Abbas is based, and Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip and prepare for parliamentary and presidential elections within a year.
Palestinians see this reconciliation as crucial for their drive to establish an independent state in the territories captured by Israel in the 1967 war.
Lose wars. Demand a do-over. Repeat as necessary.
Abbas said in his opening address: "We announce the good news from Egypt which has always carried its national and historical responsibility towards the Palestinian people. Four black years have affected the interests of Palestinians. Now we meet to assert a unified will."
The ceremony was briefly delayed by a disagreement over protocol. Palestinian sources said the dispute was over whether Meshaal should sit on the podium with Abbas or among other Palestinian delegates in the hall.
At the ceremony, Abbas was initially on the podium to give his speech, and then Meshaal took the podium for his address.
"This is an historical moment documenting the real will of the Palestinian people. The people have taken a step to retrieve its unity," said the Egyptian intelligence chief Murad Muwafi.
Shortly before the ceremony, the senior Fatah official Nabil Shaath said: "The signing has been done. Everyone signed. Today is the crowning of this achievement."
A spokesman for Abbas, Nabil Abu Rdainah, said the deal was signed on behalf of Fatah by Azzam al-Ahmad and for Hamas by Mousa Abu Marzouk. It was not immediately clear why Meshaal and Abbas did not put their own signatures to the deal.
Palestinian officials said the ceremony was a "celebration". In Hamas-controlled Gaza, university students distributed sweets, sang and rallied to mark the deal.
"We are celebrating the achievement of this victory to end divisions and send a message to the Israeli occupation that your threats will not deter us from achieving reconciliation," said Ahmed Abu Arar, who was among those rallying.
The Israeli prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, has denounced the deal and stopped transferring Palestinian tax revenues to the Palestinian Authority, saying Fatah must choose between Israel and the Islamist group that he says is an enemy of peace....
When your stated goal is to destroy Israel, then, yes, you're an enemy of peace with Israel.
Our enemies are becomming more united than I have seen in a long time. At the same time, we are move divided than I have seen in a long time. CHANGE indeed.
"Four black years have affected the interests of Palestinians. Now we meet to assert a unified will." (Abbas)
And their unified will? To commit genocide against the Jews as per the Qur'an's instructions.
Never mind, they hate each other so much, it won't be long before they're tossing each other off roofs.
When your stated goal is to destroy Israel, then, yes, you're an enemy of peace with Israel.
What's this, an Israeli leader using logic in dealing with Moslems? During his moment of clarity, Bibi should do a knowledge transfer to our leader, Prez Barack Hussein Obama.
Exactly...It won't be long till they are fighting each other over who is going to be in charge...
No-one in the western world mentions the elephants in the room.
1. That their use of "occupation" doesn't actually mean Israeli occupation of disputed territories. It means, in their eyes, that the State of Israel itself is an occupier in the very State internationally recognised as Israel. No matter that history suggests that most of what is now regarded as "Palestine" was originally allocated to Israel.
The "Palestinians" were supposed to be in what is now Jordan (80% of the territory once known as the mandate of Palestine - I think the Israelis were supposed to get 20% but now occupy much less than that)
2. Just as in the catastrophic partition of India, enacted by my own government when I was just 4, it is impossible to run a State in two separate geographical sites seperated by another State. The Eastern Pakistanis revolted and Bangladesh came into being. More blood will be spilled but hopefully by Muslim upon Muslim despite the prohibitions in the currant (koran?).
The intention is horribly clear - a pincer movement on Israel. Given the eruptions in the middle east it seems unlikely that Egypt, Jordan,Lebanon, and Syria will not join in.
A repeat of 1968 but with the aggressors now armed with western weapons?
Will the west stand by and allow this? I fear so. The west now rarely has any balls and those they have they waste on "protecting" muslims (Bosnia,Libya et al) rather than Christians (Pakistan, Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia, Sudan, Nigeria,Ivory Coast et al) or Jews. I happen to be Christian.
I don't mean to teach my Gran how to suck eggs but just had to get it off my chest and without double checking the history - although I know I'm roughly right.
"When your stated goal is to destroy Israel, then, yes, you're an enemy of peace with Israel."
And when your stated goal is to destroy non-muslims, then, yes, you're an enemy of peace with human kind.
http://crossmuslims.blogspot.com/2010/05/accursed-book-le-livre-maudit.html
Speaking of which, if the PA is so capable that they can run their own government, why can't they have their own currency? Or failing that, sponge of riyals or dinars from Saudi Arabia or Libya? Don't tell me these currency values - floating on oil and worth more than a Euro - will crash if it's used as the currency of the Palis.
So tired of the propaganda fiction re these Muslim interlopers put out there and stupid college students fall for, year after year.
Idiots.
As the Muslim world is more united the divided West will fall!!
Yep, the Paleonazis are hoping this will become just as dangerous towards Israel as what the Nazi Germany - Soviet Union Nonaggression Treaty, signed one week before the start of World War II, was to Poland in 1939. Of course, if the Israelis retaliate in the manner they should, twisted and bitter antisemitism will once again erupt on the streets of Western cities courtesy of our resident Muslim parasites and their Leftist hangers-on.
And the stupid college students of today are the stupid leaders and opinion-formers of tomorrow.