Islamic Jihad Delegation Arrives in Cairo for Palestinian Reconciliation Talks

Secretary General of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Ramadhan Abdullah Shalah.

Gaza City, 12 Sya’ban 1437/20 May 2016 (MINA) – An Islamic Jihad delegation arrived in Cairo on Thursday, as Egypt prepared to hold talks between Palestinian factions to discuss political reconciliation.

Islamic Jihad Secretary-General Ramadan Shallah and his deputy Ziad Nikhala arrived in the Egyptian capital as sources told Ma’an that they would be meeting with Egyptian officials to discuss recent political developments.

Rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas have been pitched against one another since Hamas won legislative elections in 2006 and subsequently fought its way to power in the Gaza Strip.

A new round of reconciliation talks began in Qatar and Egypt earlier this year, and senior delegations from the rival factions met in April in Gaza City.

In a speech directed at Palestinians and Israelis at an infrastructure conference in the southern Egyptian city of Assiut on Tuesday, Egyptian President Abd al-Fattah al-Sisi announced his support for the French-proposed multilateral peace initiative between the Israeli and Palestinian leadership.

The Hamas movement, the Palestine Liberation Organization and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed al-Sisi’s statements regarding efforts towards peace and reconciliation in the Palestinian territory and Israel. T/R07/R01)

Mi’raj islamic News Agency (MINA)