UN-Secretary-General Guterres welcomes the Palestinian agreement mediated by China
At a meeting in the Chinese capital, 14 rival Palestinian factions, including the Islamist Hamas and the moderately-secular Fatah, have agreed on a "national transitional government for reconciliation" for the post-war period in the Gaza Strip, as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi announced.
The plans outlined in the "Beijing Declaration" call for a "transitional government of national unity in accordance with the Palestinian groups," which is to "exercise authority and jurisdiction over all Palestinian territories" - both the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
Hamas and Fatah have been rivals for a long time. The Palestinian Autonomy Authority, led by Fatah, governs in the Israeli-occupied West Bank but wields only limited power there. In the Gaza Strip, Hamas took control in 2007 and violently displaced the Fatah party of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Israel criticized the agreement sharply and specifically targeted Abbas. "Instead of rejecting terrorism, Mahmoud Abbas embraces the Hamas murderers and rapists, revealing his true face," Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz wrote in an online post.
- The Chinese Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, stated that the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, António Guterres, has been informed about the agreement between the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and Fatah.
- The new caretaker government, as per the 'Beijing Declaration', aims to establish a unified authority over both the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, which is under Israeli occupation.
- At the UN, Stephane Dujarric, the spokesperson for the UN-Secretary-General, acknowledged receiving the details of the 'national transitional government for reconciliation' agreement between the Palestinian group Hamas and Fatah.
- Wang Yi expressed hope that the agreement would contribute to peace and stability in the Westjordanland, a region that has been the center of ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian groups for decades.
- Despite the UN's request for ceasefire, sporadic clashes between Hamas and Israel have continued, causing alarm among both regional and international leaders.
- Although Hamas has agreed to form a power-sharing government with Fatah, Israel remains firm in its stance against the Palestinian group, denouncing the agreement as an embrace of terrorism.
- The latest developments in the region, including the formation of the caretaker government and the ongoing tension between Hamas and Israel, are being closely monitored by the international community, with the UN playing a significant role in mitigating the escalating conflict.
