In a letter, Haniya reiterates commitment to the Mecca deal

Wednesday September 24, 2008 13:08 by Rami Almeghari - IMEMC

In a letter, to King Abdullah Ben Abdelaziz of Saudi Arabia, Palestinian Prime Minister, Ismail Haniya of Hamas, reiterated his commitment to the Mecca deal of Palestinian national unity, signed in Mecca of Saudi Arabia in Feb2007.

Prime Minister, Ismail Haniya

Haniya's letter to the Saudi monarch came on the eighty-seven anniversary of Saudi national day, a press release, received Tuesday by the IMEMC , read.

" We would like to reiterate our commitment to the Mecca deal as a basis for solution and Palestinian steadfastness, as we also would like to express our great interest in strong ties with your country", Haniya wrote.

The Prime Minister also hinted that " this great anniversary comes in the holy month of Ramadan and in a time your country enjoys strength and dignity"

Haniya's reiteration comes on the heels of underway Palestinian national unity talks in the Egyptian capital of Cairo, for talks over renewed national unity between the rival Hamas and Fatah parties.

In February2007, representatives of both factions signed a national unity deal in the Saudi Arabian city of Mecca under the supervision of King Abdullah Ben Abdelaziz.

Four months later, factional fighting broke out between the democratically-elected Hamas party and security services, linked with the long-standing Fatah party, resulting in the ejection of Fatah from Gaza and control by Hamas over the coastal territory.

gaza strip | palestinian politics | news report rami at imemc dot org