Terrorist factions based in Damascus are working to convene a summit of all Palestinian Authority terrorist groups early next year. The meeting, in Syria, would also include the participation of several Arab states.

The intention of the multi-party meeting is to promote unity among the various PA

The initiative for the meeting came from two terrorist factions active in the PA but with headquarters in Syria.

factions. The most critical split has developed between Hamas and Fatah, following the armed takeover of Gaza by Hamas in July of this year and the PA's Fatah leadership using political manipulation to freeze out Hamas officials since January 2006. Fatah, led by PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, currently maintains power in Judea and Samaria, while Hamas controls Gaza.

The initiative for the meeting came from two terrorist factions active in the PA but with headquarters in Syria, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP). Maher A-Taher, a spokesman for the PFLP said that their recent efforts are focused on ending the Hamas-Fatah clash, because it has been damaging to the Arab cause. A-Taher claimed that negotiations between Hamas and Fatah are already underway, but that Abbas needs to show greater receptivity.

In November, DFLP head Nayef Hawatmeh announced that he and the PFLP had developed a plan to mediate the conflict between Hamas and Fatah. Including ten points, the plan calls on Hamas to give up exclusive control in Gaza, for each party to end media incitement against its rival, for an end to political arrests, and for new presidential and parliamentary elections.

In the context of efforts to promote unity among PA terrorist groups, senior Palestinian Authority negotiator, Fatah's Ahmed Qurei, met with terrorist mastermind Hawatmeh during a recent visit to Syria.

A spokesman for Hamas, Sami Abu Zuhri, said earlier this month that the DFLP and the PFLP "were not qualified to act as mediators between Hamas and Fatah." He called the two organizations "biased" in favor of Fatah because of their inaction over “Fatah's crimes against Hamas in the West Bank.”