This is a move that I would venture to say most people think is a necessary step towards the Israelis and Palestinians being able to sit down with President Obama and work towards a peace deal:
Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal's recent visit to Egypt has brought the Islamist movement and Fatah closer to ending their differences, sources close to Hamas in the Gaza Strip revealed on Tuesday.
In another sign of rapprochement between the two parties, Hamas has welcomed plans by senior Fatah officials to visit the Gaza Strip for talks aimed at resolving the crisis.
The Egyptians were crucial in helping bring negotiators from Hamas and Fatah together to talk and are making a concession of their own to further an agreement between the warring Palestinian factions:
The sources said that Mashaal has agreed to sign a "reconciliation accord" with Fatah after the Egyptians promised to permanently reopen the Rafah border crossing between Sinai and southern Gaza.
This will allow humanitarian aid to flow into Hamas-run Gaza, which faces a shortage of building materials and medical supplies. The crossing had previously only opened for severe crises and even then for only days.
Fatah has made a few concessions to Hamas. First, they would allow Hamas to have some say over Palestinian Authority security forces. In addition:
Fatah, the sources said, has also agreed to make concessions on three other issues: bringing Hamas representatives into PLO institutions; the release of all Hamas supporters from PA prisons in the West Bank; and the establishment of a unity government that would not be committed to the Oslo Accords, but would only "respect" them.
I'm sure we all wish that a unity government would be committed to the peace process, but "respect[ing]" it at this juncture, especially when the Israelis are taking advantage of the Palestinian discord and expanding settlement activity, will have to do.
Supposedly, President Obama will release his peace plan soon and negotiator George Mitchell has been darting back and forth talking peace, so this development of a potential Palestinian unity government makes the potential of peace all that more possible.