Hamas bans rally to commemorate Yasser Arafat
The Palestinian ruling Fatah faction accused Hamas of banning Palestinians in the Gaza Strip from holding a rally to commemorate the anniversary of the death of former Palestinian Authority president Yasser Arafat, who died on November 11, 2004.
Fatah had called on its supporters to gather on Thursday afternoon at the Square of Unknown Soldiers in Gaza City to mark the 15th anniversary.
Another event planned for Monday has also been banned by Hamas.
At the same time, Fatah and Hamas have been holding indirect negotiations over PA President Mahmoud Abbas’s initiative to hold new Palestinian parliamentary and presidential elections.
Hamas said on Thursday that it has launched consultations with several Palestinian factions and civil society organizations concerning Abbas’s elections initiative. The consultations, Hamas said, are in “continuation of the positive atmosphere regarding the proposed elections and our keenness to ensure the success of the vote.”
On Wednesday, a senior Hamas delegation headed to Cairo for talks with Egyptian intelligence officials on the Palestinian elections. The visit comes after Hamas leaders held a series of meetings in the Gaza Strip with the head of the Palestinian Central Elections Commission, Hana Nasser, who has been trying to persuade Hamas and other Gaza-based factions to agree to Abbas’s initiative.
Mahmoud al-Aloul, deputy chairman of Fatah, said that Hamas’s ban shows that Hamas’s announcement welcoming the new elections is nothing but “slogans.” Aloul added that the ban sends a “frustrating and unreasonable message.”
He said that Fatah was optimistic that matters were moving in the right direction after Hamas welcomed Abbas’s initiative to hold long overdue elections.
“But Hamas took this unwise and unexpected decision to ban the event commemorating Arafat,” Aloul added.
Another senior Fatah official, Fayez Abu Aytah, said that his movement was also planning to hold a rally in the Gaza Strip next week to mark the anniversary of Arafat’s death. He claimed that Hamas informed Fatah of its decision to ban the rally.
Abu Aytah said that Hamas’s decision contradicts its announcement in favor of holding new elections.
“On the one hand, Hamas says it supports President Abbas’s decision to hold new elections,” he said. “On the other hand, Hamas is preventing our people from participating in events marking the 15th anniversary of Arafat.”
The PLO’s Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and several other Palestinian groups also condemned the Hamas ban, saying that no one has the right to prevent Palestinians from commemorating a “big national leader.”