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Palestinian factions agree to form unity government
The Beijing Declaration was signed at the closing ceremony of a reconciliation dialogue among 14 Palestinian factions held in China’s capital from July 21-23, according to the readout, Reuters reported.
The meeting was held amid attempts by international mediators to reach a cease-fire deal for Gaza, with one of the sticking points being the “day-after” plan - how the Hamas-run Gaza will be governed once the war that began on Oct. 7 ends.
Senior Hamas official Hussam Badran said the most important point of the Beijing Declaration was to form a Palestinian national unity government to manage the affairs of Palestinians.
“This creates a formidable barrier against all regional and international interventions that seek to impose realities against our people’s interests in managing Palestinian affairs post-war,” Badran said.
Badran said the national unity government would manage the affairs of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, oversee reconstruction, and prepare conditions for elections.
Currently Hamas runs Gaza and Fatah forms the backbone of the Palestinian Authority, which has limited control in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Details of the agreement did not set out a timeframe for forming a new government. In March, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who heads Fatah, appointed a new government led by one of his close aides, Mohammad Mustafa.
The agreement further demonstrates Beijing’s growing influence in the Middle East, after it brokered a breakthrough peace deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran last year.
“The core achievement is to make it clear that the Palestine Liberation Organization is the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people,” Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi said during the closing ceremony, according to the readout.
“China sincerely hopes that the Palestinian factions will achieve Palestinian independence at an early date on the basis of internal reconciliation, and is willing to strengthen communication and coordination with relevant parties to jointly work to implement the Beijing Declaration reached today.”
The most “prominent highlight” was the agreement on forming an interim national reconciliation government around the post-war governance of Gaza, Wang said, adding that the international community should support efforts to form an interim Palestinian government to control Gaza and the West Bank.