Russia has invited all Palestinian Arab factions, including Hamas, to meet in Moscow on February 26, Palestinian Authority (PA) cabinet leader Mohammad Shtayyeh said Sunday, according to CNN.
Shtayyeh said the Palestinian Authority, which is dominated by the Fatah political faction, is still seeking unity with Hamas, however, "there are some prerequisites," including an "understanding on issues that have to do with resistance."
"We will see if Hamas is ready to come to ground with us, we are ready to engage. If Hamas is not ready to come to ground with us that's a different story. But we need Palestinian unity," he said.
Pressed about the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, Shtayyeh said there is "no way we accept any killing of any innocent people."
Hamas and Fatah have been at odds since 2007, when Hamas violently took control of Gaza in a bloody coup.
A unity government between Hamas and Fatah collapsed in 2015 when PA chairman Abbas decided to dissolve it amid a deepening rift between the sides.
Hamas and Fatah signed a reconciliation agreement in October of 2017, as part of which Hamas was to transfer power in Gaza by December 1 of that year.
That deadline was initially put back by 10 days and later reportedly hit “obstacles”. It has never been implemented.