PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas
PA Chairman Mahmoud AbbasIsrael news photo: Flash 90

Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas is visiting Cairo where he is meeting with the military regime and laying the cornerstone for a new PA embassy as the Muslim Brotherhood tries to increase its dominance.

It is not known if he will meet with Muslim Brotherhood leaders, who won control of the parliament in recent elections and now and are trying to take over the presidency, breaking a previous promise to keep hands off the executive seat of power.

The Brotherhood is the mother movement of the Hamas terrorist organization and has been trying to negotiate a unity agreement between Hamas and Abbas, leader of the rival Fatah faction. Unity with Hamas is a high priority on Abbas’ agenda during the visit.

Abbas shrugged off reported threats of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) to assassinate him. Fatah issued a statement stating, "(PFLP leader] Ahmed Jibril is a merchant for Palestinian and Arab blood. He is desperately trying to appease outside parties in an attempt to destroy the political achievements of our people and their wise leadership.”

Abbas is meeting with Field Marshall Hussein Tantawi, head of the provisional military regime that replaced ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak last year.

He also will lay the foundation for new headquarters of the Palestinian Authority embassy n Cairo, the Bethlehem-based Ma'an news agency reported.

Since his taking over the PA after the death of Yasser Arafat seven years ago, Abbas has traveled around the world several times to encourage international sympathy for the PA and its political and territorial demands from Israel.

His term of office has expired, but he continues to serve, having postponed elections several times.