Abbas phones Mashaal to discuss reconciliation
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
December 13, 2012 - 1:00am

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- President Mahmoud Abbas phoned Hamas chief Khalid Mashaal on Wednesday to discuss ending the division according to prior agreements, a Fatah official said. Azzam al-Ahmad said Abbas phoned Mashaal to accelerate implementing national reconciliation. Abbas talked with him about his first visit to Gaza, and about Hamas' anniversary celebrations. Al-Ahmad said he met Mashaal on Wednesday and a member in Fatah's central committee as part of new efforts to see if a reconciliation deal could finally be implemented.

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In Step Toward Palestinian Unity, Hamas Holds Rally in West Bank
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Jodi Rudoren - December 13, 2012 - 1:00am

NABLUS, West Bank — Hundreds of men and boys sporting the signature green of the militant Hamas faction marched through the narrow alleys of the old city here on Thursday afternoon, calling for Palestinian unity but also renewed attacks on Israeli cities, in the first public demonstration by the Islamist party allowed in the West Bank in years.

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Hamas chief ends Gaza visit with Palestinian unity call
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Nidal al-Mughrabi - December 10, 2012 - 1:00am

GAZA, Dec 10 (Reuters) - Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal ended his first visit to the Gaza Strip on Monday with a pledge his Islamist movement would strive to heal political rifts with Palestinian rivals who hold sway in the occupied West Bank. His comments reinforced promises he and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, leader of the rival Fatah movement, made to each other in a telephone conversation a month ago, to forge ahead with a stalled unity deal opposed by Israel.

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Palestinians See UN Gambit as Step Toward Reconciliation
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line
by Diana Atallah - November 30, 2012 - 1:00am

[Ramallah] – Palestinians took to the streets of Ramallah on Thursday night and into the early hours of Friday morning to celebrate the UN General Assembly vote bestowing non-member status to “Palestine.” Celebrants expressed hope that their newfound recognition at the United Nations is a step closer to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state and many expressed belief that this diplomatic success was empowered by the recent military confrontation in the Gaza

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No 'victory' at UN unless Palestinian unity is the result
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Hussein Ibish - (Opinion) November 30, 2012 - 1:00am

The recent conflict between Israel and Hamas significantly recontextualised the request by the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) for an upgrade from the United Nations General Assembly to "non-member observer state" status. How all parties react to the upgrade will have a significant effect on the balance of power within Palestinian society, and strongly influence future regional developments.

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Mahmoud Abbas to visit Gaza after statehood win
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Khaled Abu Toameh - November 29, 2012 - 1:00am

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is planning to visit the Gaza Strip after the UN General Assembly vote in favor of upgrading the status of the Palestinians to non-member observer state, a senior PLO official announced Thursday. The announcement came shortly before Abbas was asked the GA in New York to vote in favor of the statehood bid.

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Hamas Chief Revives Talk of Reuniting With P.L.O.
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Anne Barnard - November 28, 2012 - 1:00am

BEIRUT, Lebanon — On the eve of the United Nations vote on whether to declare the Palestinian Authority a nonmember state, the leader of Hamas revived a long-percolating proposal for his militant party to join the Palestine Liberation Organization, the group that, with Israel, signed the Oslo Accord, which Hamas has long derided.

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Gaza factions to join rally supporting UN bid
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
November 28, 2012 - 1:00am

GAZA CITY (Ma’an) – Representatives of all Palestinian factions on Tuesday held a meeting in Gaza City during which all factions agreed to organize a joint rally raising Palestinian flags only to show support to the Palestinian statehood bid. Member of the politburo of the Palestinian People’s Party Walid al-Awad told Ma’an that factions would submit a memo to the government in Gaza about the rally, planned for Thursday.

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Violence in Gaza kills Palestinians' chance at unity
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
(Editorial) November 16, 2012 - 1:00am

When will Hamas ever learn? A flurry of rockets fired into Israel from Gaza this week quickly started another cycle of reflexive escalations, one that could lead to another full-scale Israeli incursion. That, at least, is what Israel is threatening, and what Hamas seems to be agitating for.

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Hamas MP says Abbas not welcome in Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
November 8, 2012 - 1:00am

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Hamas-affiliated MP Yahia Mousa said Wednesday he would not welcome Mahmoud Abbas to the Gaza Strip, after the president was reported to have considered a joint visit with the Turkish premier. "No hello, no welcome, no greeting, your visit is refused. Gaza is the house of the revolution and the revolutionary, and we don't welcome anyone who sells our homeland," Mousa posted on his official Facebook account.

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