GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — The Popular Conference to Support the Palestinian Reconciliation, End the Division and Restore National Unity convened on Nov. 18 at the Rashad al-Shawa Cultural Hall in Gaza City. At the conclusion of the gathering, mukhtars (village elders) and involved activist groups issued a document in support of Palestinian unity efforts and listing a number of demands. Eleven Palestinian factions also signed the document, with the exception of Hamas and Fatah, to whom the document was addressed.
The group Patriots to End the Split spearheaded the conference. Yussri Darwish, coordinator of the group, told Al-Monitor, “We, as Patriots to End the Split, called on Palestinian factions, tribes and civil organizations to participate in the conference. Seventeen people representing political, civil and tribal groups from the West Bank and Gaza were invited to address the conference, which is considered a first-of-its-kind popular movement in Palestine. The aim of the conference was to pressure both sides of the division — the [Palestinian Authority (PA)], represented by Fatah, and Hamas — to end the Palestinian division and achieve unity.”
Around 500 young people from Gaza attended the event along with representatives of community institutions and the Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine. The participating factions conveyed the conference’s recommendations to the 13 Palestinian factions — including Fatah, Hamas and the three aforementioned groups — scheduled to meet Nov. 21 in Cairo to further reconciliation.
The conference document contains a number of popular demands, foremost of which is ending the siege against Gaza and lifting the punitive, administrative and financial measures imposed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in response to the administrative committee established by Hamas to oversee Gaza. Conference participants also called for forming a national unity government of all Palestinian factions, merging the security services and various government ministries under the framework of a single governing administration, creating real job opportunities for Gaza’s youth and improving health and social conditions.
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