Ismail Haneyya the head of the Political Bureau of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) has underlined that there are three priorities on the agenda of the Cairo reconciliation talks which have a significant impact on the Palestinian cause in the next phase stressing his Movement’s adherence to the resistance project and its refusal to recognize the legitimacy of Israel.
During a meeting with university students in the Gaza Strip Haneyya said that the Palestinian reconciliation is a national priority which concerns all Palestinians especially the student movement.
He noted that Hamas is committed to the Cairo agreement and that it will not discuss a new agreement but rather the mechanisms to implement it. “We had enough agreements starting from the 2005 agreement then the Makkah agreement in 2007 the Sana’a agreement in 2009 the Cairo agreement in 2011 and the Shati’ agreement in 2014” he said adding “What we want now is implementing these agreements.”
Haneyya stressed that there are issues to be arranged and the priority issues now are related to the administration of Gaza and the West Bank and this is the responsibility of the Palestinian Authority and its institutions including the Palestinian government in preparation for the elections.
The second issue according to Haneyya is the leadership framework of our people both at home and abroad which is represented in the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). I say to you based on my humble position: Hamas’s decision is with the reconciliation and joining the PLO to rearrange it politically and administratively.
The third issue Haneyya explained is the agreement on a joint national political program and Hamas has made a step in this direction by issuing a political document that does not oppose the establishment of a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with a full sovereignty and with Jerusalem as its capital and the right of Palestinian refugees to return home.
Haneyya explained that the success of the Palestinian reconciliation will have a great impact on the arrangement of our national house in the West Bank and Gaza.
Haneyya said that the first phase of the implementation of the reconciliation agreement was done by Hamas with full commitment and self-implementation such as handing over the crossings dissolving the administrative committee accepting the government’s arrival in Gaza and participating in a comprehensive dialogue this month in Cairo.
Haneyya said: “We salute and thank all ministries and employees and members of the police. I express my respect for what they have done. They showed a great example of accepting the Palestinian reconciliation. They were asked to leave the crossings and to secure the Yasser Arafat commemoration event in Gaza and they did.”
With regard to the resistance Haneyya said that Hamas’s strategy is to continue to preserve and build the resistance project and not to give it up or to accept bargaining over it.
Haneyya added “The resistance issue is part of the 2011 Cairo agreement and it is stated in the protocol signed recently in Cairo so no one could disarm the resistance.”
He continued “After looking at the Palestinian Israeli regional and international circumstances supervised by the American administration there was no alternative but to go to the Palestinian reconciliation to make it a legitimate national necessity.”
He stressed that Hamas is well aware of the plan to re-divide the region for the benefit of the Israeli project “Thus the strategy we adopt is the strategy of national unity to protect the Palestinian cause.”
Haneyya said that the aim of this plan is to solve the Arab-Israeli conflict in order to serve the strategic superiority of the enemy and to keep its upper hand in the region to serve western powers.
Haneyya stressed that Hamas will not recognize Israel saying: “We say it today and repeat again we will not recognize Israel.”
As for the continuing attacks by the Israeli occupation forces against the Palestinians Haneyya said: “The enemy wages a war after another in order to eliminate the resistance that faced these attacks on many occasions.”
Haneyya paid tribute to the late President Yasser Arafat and to the masses that took part in commemorating the 13th anniversary of his martyrdom in the Saraya and Katiba areas in Gaza considering that doing so as part of achieving reconciliation.
He also paid tribute to Palestinian youths and university students and said that our youths today constitute “an important pillar of our people.”
He concluded “I recall today at the Islamic University of Gaza all memories. The Islamic University has the right to be proud of the fact that many of the Palestinian leaders on the top of them Mohammed Al-Deif prisoner Hassan Salameh and many others from all factions have graduated from this university.”
