ID :
426880
Mon, 12/05/2016 - 10:58
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Palestine's Future Bigger Than Hamas Or Fatah - Hamas Senior Leader

By Nur Ashikin Abdul Aziz KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 5 (Bernama) -- "Hamas and Fatah do not match, like oil and water. But we are in one glass - Palestine. If the glass breaks, neither oil nor water will remain," senior Hamas leader, Dr Khaled Qadomi, said in referring to the future of Palestine's two political parties. "As the 'glass', our homeland, is much bigger than the two components of 'oil and water.' The only solution for us is to work together, and have a common programme to live within this beautiful Palestine," the Hamas representative in Iran explained to Bernama in a recent interview. Khaled, with three other Hamas representatives, were here to attend the 2016 UMNO (United Malays National Organisation, the Malaysia's largest political party) General Assembly from Nov 29 until Dec 3. According to Khaled, at the recent 7th Fatah Conference in Ramallah, Hamas has expressed its willingness to cooperate with its rival political party, "with open heart and open mind." Hamas representative who spoke at the Conference also called for unity among the two parties, as disunity "would only benefit Israel." Relationship between the two sides has episodes of ups and downs throughout history mainly because of their stand on Israel's existence. In November, President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah and the Palestinian Authority that operates in West Bank, suggested the creation of a temporary unity government along with Hamas, which controls Gaza Strip. On Israel's move to ban the use of speakers for call to prayers in mosques in Jerusalem and Arab towns within the Green Line, Khaled warned that if the draft law is passed by the Knesset (parliament), there would be more tensions and aggressions in the area. "If there is no justice, there will be a reaction by our people. The Intifada or resistance is a reaction to an action of the Occupation and the astrocities of the Israelis on us," he said when asked if the move could spur a Third Intifada. According to reports, a draft law on the ban was approved recently but has yet to be approved by Israel's Knesset. The First Intifada in 1987 ended in 1993 with the signing of the Oslo Accords, while the Second Intifada took place between 2000 and 2005. Both uprisings against Israel's Occupation of the West Bank and Gaza saw thousands killed. Meanwhile, on the issue of US President-elect Donald Trump, Khaled said he preferred to wait and see before commenting further on how Trump's tenure will impact Palestine. "Let's judge him based on his deeds and not what he said during his campaign to win the election," the Hamas senior leader said. "Everybody was talking about the bad chemistry between (Israel Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu and (US President Barack) Obama, but at the end of the day Obama granted more support to Israel than any other US President," he said. In September, the Obama administration signed a US$38 billion in military assistance over the next decade with Israel, the largest such aid package in US history. --BERNAMA

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