PA President Mahmoud Abbas, who visited Istanbul on Monday, was said to have relayed to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan his concern over the rapprochement between Turkey and Hamas, the official revealed.Erdogan, according to the official, offered to mediate between the PA and Hamas -an offer that Abbas accepted.Erdogan declared that ending the power struggle between the rival Palestinian parties “is a must.” He claimed that Hamas had also welcomed a mediation role for Turkey.Erdogan was speaking to reporters during a joint press conference with Syrian President Bashar Assad, who was also visiting Turkey.“Divisions should not continue under the current circumstances,” Erdogan said. “I believe we can make peace between Hamas and Fatah.”Hamas: PA depriving residents of the Gaza Strip of passportsMeanwhile, the Hamas government accused the PA of depriving residents of the Gaza Strip of passports. The government said the ban had been in effect since July 2008, effectively preventing tens of thousands of Palestinians from being able to travel abroad.“The Fatah government in Ramallah does not care about the suffering of the people in the Gaza Strip, who are already under siege,” a spokesman for the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Interior said. “Every citizen is entitled to a passport, and no one has the right to deprive people of getting passports for whatever reason.”Palestinian passports are normally printed in the West Bank. Hamas said the PA was refusing, for “security reasons,” to send thousands of passports to residents of the Gaza Strip who needed to travel.According to the Hamas government, many Palestinian academics and “respected” figures have been denied passports by the PA government for the same reason.
Turkey’s support of Hamas worries PA
‘We want blockade lifted, but Hamas must end Gaza coup.’
PA President Mahmoud Abbas, who visited Istanbul on Monday, was said to have relayed to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan his concern over the rapprochement between Turkey and Hamas, the official revealed.Erdogan, according to the official, offered to mediate between the PA and Hamas -an offer that Abbas accepted.Erdogan declared that ending the power struggle between the rival Palestinian parties “is a must.” He claimed that Hamas had also welcomed a mediation role for Turkey.Erdogan was speaking to reporters during a joint press conference with Syrian President Bashar Assad, who was also visiting Turkey.“Divisions should not continue under the current circumstances,” Erdogan said. “I believe we can make peace between Hamas and Fatah.”Hamas: PA depriving residents of the Gaza Strip of passportsMeanwhile, the Hamas government accused the PA of depriving residents of the Gaza Strip of passports. The government said the ban had been in effect since July 2008, effectively preventing tens of thousands of Palestinians from being able to travel abroad.“The Fatah government in Ramallah does not care about the suffering of the people in the Gaza Strip, who are already under siege,” a spokesman for the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Interior said. “Every citizen is entitled to a passport, and no one has the right to deprive people of getting passports for whatever reason.”Palestinian passports are normally printed in the West Bank. Hamas said the PA was refusing, for “security reasons,” to send thousands of passports to residents of the Gaza Strip who needed to travel.According to the Hamas government, many Palestinian academics and “respected” figures have been denied passports by the PA government for the same reason.