Palestinian reconciliation
As Hamas and Fatah sign a reconciliation agreement, could this be the end to years of rift and division?
After four years of rift and rivalry the two Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah signed a long-awaited reconciliation agreement in the Egyptian capital Cairo on Wednesday.
In a ceremony attended by representatives from the UN, EU and the Arab league, both factions’ leaders, Mahmoud Abbas and Khaled Meshaal, met face-to-face for first time since 2007.
They announced that the black page of division has been turned forever; and that the only Palestinian fight is against Israel.
How did the new regime in Egypt achieve in two months what the previous adminsitration had failed to do in years?
Inside Story, with presenter Nick Clark, discusses with Gamal Abdel Gawad, from the Al Ahram Centre of Strategic Studies; Mustafa Barghouti, the head of the Palestinian Initiative; and Yaakov Katz, a military and defence analyst from the Jerusalem Post.
This episode of Inside Story aired from Thursday, May 5, 2011.