Egyptian, Palestinian leaders meet amid likely Gaza shakeup

CAIRO — Egyptian and Palestinian leaders met in Cairo on Sunday amid signs of a rapprochement between Cairo and the Islamic militant Hamas group that could shake up Gaza’s political landscape and sideline the Palestinian president.

Officials close to Mahmoud Abbas said the Palestinian leader met with President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi to seek clarifications on what appears to be an emerging power-sharing agreement between Gaza’s Hamas rulers and an exiled Abbas rival, former Gaza strongman Mohammed Dahlan.

Under the deal— parts of which have been confirmed by other parties involved — Hamas would retain control over Gaza’s security, while Dahlan would eventually return to Gaza and handle its foreign relations.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment.

Neither leader made any comments to the media after their meeting in Cairo. A statement by Egypt’s presidential spokesman stuck to generalities. The two leaders, the statement added, discussed the latest developments in the Palestinians’ bid for statehood and ways to revive the peace process.

Dahlan was a key Fatah figure behind the Fatah-Hamas street clashes that erupted after Hamas’ victory in parliamentary elections in 2006, which eventually led to the violent takeover of Gaza by the group a year later.

The emerging understandings between Egypt, Hamas and Dahlan could pose a serious political threat to the prospects of Palestinian statehood in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem. A Palestinian “mini state” in Gaza could undermine the official state sought by Abbas and others within the pre-1967 lines.