Haniyeh hails Saudi role in internal reconciliation

Hamas Deputy Chief Ismail Haniyeh today hailed the role of Saudi Arabia in forging an internal reconciliation between his movement and Fatah.

In a sermon delivered in the Mosque of the Saudi Neighbourhood in the city of Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip, Haniyeh called for more Saudi and Arab involvement in the internal Palestinian reconciliation.

“We welcome the role of the kingdom [Saudi] in the reconciliation,” he said. “We are committed to all the previous reconciliation deals we have signed and our sacrifices and concessions are the real proof of that.”

He said that the “brothers” in the Palestinian unity government are “not serious” regarding dealing with Gaza’s “outstanding issues, mainly the employees and the elections”.

The top Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip also called for more Saudi and Arab efforts to put a strategic plan to protect Al-Aqsa Mosque and put an end to the Israeli occupation’s policies in Jerusalem.

Regarding resistance, Haniyeh said that Hamas “has and will never” interfere in any other country’s internal policies.

He said that his movement would accept any “military support” from any Arab or Islamic state for the purpose of fighting the Israeli occupation.

In addition, he called for all the Arab and Islamic nations to exert more efforts to break the eight-year Israeli siege on the Gaza Strip.

The Palestinian government in Gaza inaugurated a new neighbourhood included 1,560 residential units sponsored by Saudi Arabia. The Hamas leadership suggested the area be called the Saudi Neighbourhood.