The announcement comes after Hamas, which is in control of the PA government, finally rejected the policy positions elaborated in the document. Abbas (Abu Mazen) had offered Hamas the option of avoiding a referendum by accepting the compromise represented by the document. After a series of extensions, Hamas finally rejected the principles of the agreement, paving the way for Abu Mazen's announcement on Saturday.
The policy paper PA residents will be asked to accept or reject next month, called the National Conciliation Document, was drafted by terrorists imprisoned in Israel. The signatories to the draft agreement include representatives of Fatah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front and the Democratic Front.
Among the clauses in the "Prisoners' Document" is a call to agree to a Palestinian state in all of Judea, Samaria and Gaza, including Jerusalem as the capital. Other consensus principles mentioned in the document are the demand for Arab refugees to be settled in Israel, the creation of a "unified resistance front," the release of prisoners held in Israeli jails, the establishment of a "national unity government," and more.
Israel has already rejected the proposals in the document related to demands on the Jewish State. No leading Israeli politician ever has agreed to the conditions demanded.
Polls have shown that the plan has the support of more than three-quarters of the PA public.
The policy paper PA residents will be asked to accept or reject next month, called the National Conciliation Document, was drafted by terrorists imprisoned in Israel. The signatories to the draft agreement include representatives of Fatah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front and the Democratic Front.
Among the clauses in the "Prisoners' Document" is a call to agree to a Palestinian state in all of Judea, Samaria and Gaza, including Jerusalem as the capital. Other consensus principles mentioned in the document are the demand for Arab refugees to be settled in Israel, the creation of a "unified resistance front," the release of prisoners held in Israeli jails, the establishment of a "national unity government," and more.
Israel has already rejected the proposals in the document related to demands on the Jewish State. No leading Israeli politician ever has agreed to the conditions demanded.
Polls have shown that the plan has the support of more than three-quarters of the PA public.