Fatah and Hamas Meet in Moscow To Discuss Unity Government

Representatives of Fatah and Hamas are meeting in Moscow to discuss the possibilities of creating a unity government for the Palestinian territories, the fourth of such meetings that Russia has hosted. The meeting is expected to last three days in order to work out a “unified strategy.” Speaking to reporters, Mustafa Barghouti, the Secretary General of the Palestinian National Initiative, said that he had “never seen the atmosphere so close to unity as it is today … because people feel the responsibility after all these massacres that our people have been subjected to.” Barghouti told Al Jazeera that the talks would focus on a future national consensus government, which would “[devote] its attention and its work mainly to alleviate this terrible suffering in Gaza” and prevent “Israeli efforts to enforce ethnic cleansing on the people of Gaza.”