GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Fatah unexpectedly announced last week it was ending its participation in the Great Return March early, calling the actions of its rival faction Hamas during the protests "degenerate." Meanwhile, other Palestinian factions participating under the name of the Coordination Committee of the Great Return March announced the protests will continue until June 5, marking the anniversary of Israel’s occupation of Jerusalem in 1967.

In its May 16 statement, Fatah demanded the various Palestinian factions, including Hamas, form a committee to assess the march and address mistakes that occurred. Fatah gave no specific examples of such mistakes. The next step, it stressed, will be for the Palestinian National and Islamic Forces committee to examine plans for future activities.

The Great Return March began March 30, with Palestinian people and factions in the Gaza Strip participating en masse to draw the world's attention to the right of Palestinian refugees to return to the lands they were forced to leave in 1948. Hamas also is demonstrating with the aim of ending the decadelong blockade on the coastal territory — a goal Fatah said should be separate from the march.

“Fatah ended its participation in the protests because many other Palestinian factions, especially Hamas, began to use the protests for purposes other than those set in the beginning. Hamas is seeking to take advantage of the march to try to break the siege on Gaza, instead of focusing on the right of return," Fatah leader Yahya Rabah told Al-Monitor.