Russia offers to host Palestine-Israel, Hamas-Fatah meetings
Russia has officially proposed to organize a meeting between chief Palestinian and Israeli officials as part of wider efforts to resolve the conflict between the two sides.
The announcement was made by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday at a press conference held after a meeting with his Palestinian counterpart Riyad al-Maliki in Moscow.
"We see the desire of some external players to push the Palestinian problem into the background, depriving it of priority in regional affairs," Lavrov said.
To counter such attempts, the speediest restoration of Palestinian unity is of particular importance, he said.
He also expressed deep concern about the United States' stance on the Palestinian issue and its disregard for international resolutions.
During Friday's talks, Lavrov recalled that an intra-Palestinian dialogue was held in 2017, when participants discussed the possibility of repeating this practice in 2019 with the participation of all Palestinian factions, including Fatah and Hamas.
The Israelis do not rule out in principle the possibility of a meeting, but they are not yet ready to agree on a concrete date because of the absence of unity between the Palestinians, Lavrov said.
Maliki, in turn, said the Palestinian side is always ready to accept the Russian invitation to hold a meeting with Israelis, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.
He said Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had accepted the initiative of Russian President Vladimir Putin to organize a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Russia, but the idea was rejected by the Israeli side.
Maliki further called on Russia and the international community to pressure Israel to abide by its agreements with the Palestinians and comply with the relevant international resolutions.
The Palestinian minister also stressed the need for finding an international mechanism on the basis of international references and resolutions, leading to a settlement based on a two-state solution and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The Palestinian leadership has been divided between Fatah and Hamas since 2006, when the latter scored a landslide victory in parliamentary elections in the Gaza Strip. Hamas has ever since been running the coastal enclave, while Fatah has been based in the autonomous parts the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Previous reconciliation attempts by the two sides to form a power-sharing unity government in Gaza and the West Bank have failed.
Read more:
Qassam Brigades claims killing 3 Israeli troops in northern Gaza
Dozens detained, several wounded in Israeli raids in West Bank
‘Ethnic cleansing’: Hamas blasts Israeli attacks on Gaza hospital amid intl. silence
VIDEO | Iran-Syria: For Resistance
Qassam Brigades claims killing 3 Israeli troops in northern Gaza
More alive than ever: Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's legacy grows stronger in martyrdom
Occupation of Syria’s highest peak Mount Hermon part of ‘Greater Israel’ project
Iran: Syrian people will decide their future without foreign interference
IRGC says Iran’s power exceeds borders, warns enemies to adjust themselves
Dozens detained, several wounded in Israeli raids in West Bank
‘Ethnic cleansing’: Hamas blasts Israeli attacks on Gaza hospital amid intl. silence
PressTV NEWSLETTER
now
This makes it easy to access the Press TV website
