United States Middle East envoy George C. Mitchell on Thursday broke from Bush administration policy and supported a Fatah-Hamas unity government, although he added that Hamas must first recognize Israel and halt violence. Mitchell admitted there is not a good chance that Hamas will fulfill the conditions.
The Bush administration had distanced itself from the attempts of Fatah and Hamas joining forces again and tried to work for the dominance of Fatah, led by Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas.