Abbas to meet with Hamas leader in Saudi Arabia

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will meet with Hamas’ top leader in Saudi Arabia next week in another effort to negotiate a national unity government agreement, an aide to Abbas said today.

The meeting between Abbas and Hamas supreme leader Khaled Mashaal is to take place on Tuesday, the official said. The two leaders met in Syria last month, but failed to reach agreement on forming a government.

The decision to meet came as Fatah and Hamas gunmen battled in the streets of Gaza in a new wave of factional violence.

Abbas, speaking at his headquarters in the West Bank city of Ramallah today, appealed for calm.

“I call on all parties in Gaza to stop these actions that harm the Palestinian people,” he said.

Saudi Arabia had invited Abbas and Mashaal to travel there to try to resolve their differences. Speaking today at his West Bank headquarters, Abbas did not confirm the meeting, but reiterated that he was willing to travel to Saudi Arabia in theory for new talks with Mashaal.

“We are in contact now with Saudi Arabia over a meeting, and when they are ready to receive us, for sure we will go without any hesitation,” he said.

Hamas and Abbas’ Fatah movement have been at loggerheads since Hamas won parliamentary elections last year and formed a Cabinet, splitting power in the Palestinian government.

The United States, Israel and the European Union, which list Hamas as a terror group, launched an economic boycott of the Palestinian Authority after Hamas’ victory, demanding the group renounce violence and recognise Israel’s right to exist.

Abbas hopes that a unity government with a moderate agenda will alleviate the sanctions, but several previous efforts at striking a coalition agreement with Hamas have foundered.