The Hamas-led Palestinian government is looking for help from its main rival, Fatah, in the face of a financial crisis, international isolation and internal unrest, calling for a "national unity" coalition as a way out of the crisis.
Hamas renewed its appeal on Sunday, but there was no sign that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah, thrown out in January elections after four decades in control of Palestinian politics, would accept.
Fatah officials even failed to show up for a meeting of factions called by Hamas on Sunday.
"We affirmed that the issue of forming a national unity government is under consideration," Ghazi Hamad, the government spokesperson told reporters. "The door is open to Fatah."
Fatah, however, has already rejected joining a unity government and is enjoying the difficulties Hamas faces in running the government while trying to avoid compromising its hardline positions.
The situation has become critical. Sanctions by Israel and the West have dried up the Palestinian treasury, and salaries for 140,000 public sector workers are more than two weeks overdue, triggering demonstrations.
Bitterness has heightened in recent days since Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas accused Abbas of trying to undermine the new government.
Abbas aides called Haniyeh's comments unacceptable.
Meanwhile Iran has offered to donate more than US$50 million to the Palestinian Authority to help it with its budget crisis. It is the first solid promise of financial aid for the new Hamas government.
Russia has also offered to provide aid, although it has not stipulated what it is offering and how it will be paid.
Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said that he was honored to help the Palestinian nation and called on other Muslim nations to follow suit.
Iran's donation, announced after an anti-Zionism conference in Tehran, is less than half of the US$132 million the Palestinian Authority requires to pay its workers for a month.
The US, EU and Canada withdrew their donations because Hamas refused to recognize Israel and renounce violence. Israel also did not transfer US$55 million it owes the Palestinian Authority in customs duties.
Iran's offer of help does not mean the crisis is over. Tehran has to transfer the money to the Palestinian Authority, which has had trouble getting banking facilities since Hamas took over.
Also the Palestinian Authority needs US$55 million every month, and by the end of this month it will have another wage bill.
A unity coalition would be designed to put differences aside and give legitimacy to the Hamas-led government as a way of persuading the West to resume vital foreign aid. But many in Fatah are hoping Hamas will fail and be forced to call new elections.
Four people jailed in the landmark Hong Kong national security trial of "47 democrats" accused of conspiracy to commit subversion were freed today after more than four years behind bars, the second group to be released in a month. Among those freed was long-time political and LGBTQ activist Jimmy Sham (岑子杰), who also led one of Hong Kong’s largest pro-democracy groups, the Civil Human Rights Front, which disbanded in 2021. "Let me spend some time with my family," Sham said after arriving at his home in the Kowloon district of Jordan. "I don’t know how to plan ahead because, to me, it feels
Poland is set to hold a presidential runoff election today between two candidates offering starkly different visions for the country’s future. The winner would succeed Polish President Andrzej Duda, a conservative who is finishing his second and final term. The outcome would determine whether Poland embraces a nationalist populist trajectory or pivots more fully toward liberal, pro-European policies. An exit poll by Ipsos would be released when polls close today at 9pm local time, with a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points. Final results are expected tomorrow. Whoever wins can be expected to either help or hinder the
North Korea has detained another official over last week’s failed launch of a warship, which damaged the naval destroyer, state media reported yesterday. Pyongyang announced “a serious accident” at Wednesday last week’s launch ceremony, which crushed sections of the bottom of the new destroyer. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called the mishap a “criminal act caused by absolute carelessness.” Ri Hyong-son, vice department director of the Munitions Industry Department of the Party Central Committee, was summoned and detained on Sunday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. He was “greatly responsible for the occurrence of the serious accident,” it said. Ri is the fourth person
The collapse of the Swiss Birch glacier serves as a chilling warning of the escalating dangers faced by communities worldwide living under the shadow of fragile ice, particularly in Asia, experts said. Footage of the collapse on Wednesday showed a huge cloud of ice and rubble hurtling down the mountainside into the hamlet of Blatten. Swiss Development Cooperation disaster risk reduction adviser Ali Neumann said that while the role of climate change in the case of Blatten “still needs to be investigated,” the wider impacts were clear on the cryosphere — the part of the world covered by frozen water. “Climate change and
RSS