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It is no secret that Egypt’s role in Palestine has been declining, especially after failing to mediate a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, which Qatar did. Furthermore, the Turkish-sponsored reconciliation talks between Hamas and Fatah exposed Cairo’s regional decline in favor of Doha and Ankara.
Egypt has failed to support the Palestinians on several occasions, despite the fact that Cairo views the Gaza Strip as its backyard and thinks it has the exclusive right to speak on behalf of the Palestinian people. Did the Palestinians turn to other parties because they felt Egypt was a dishonest and biased mediator towards Israel? Will Israel ask the other parties for help and also turn its back on Egypt?
It is significant that an official Fatah delegation that included members of the movement’s central committee, Jibril Rajoub and Rouhi Fattouh, met in Turkey with a Hamas delegation led by Ismail Haniyeh and his deputy, Saleh Al-Arouri. They talked about ending the split, implementing the recommendations of the recent secretary-general meeting in Beirut, and discussing activating the joint leadership mechanism. The leader of Fatah, the PLO and the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, called on the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, to support the reconciliation initiative and the holding of elections in Palestine. Erdogan was asked to support the elections by sending official observers.
When the general secretaries of the Palestinian factions met in Beirut in early September, they established three committees, the most important of which is the dialogue committee for reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas. The recent meetings in Istanbul were a prelude to dialogue; each side seems to be happy with the location of their meetings.
READ: There are winners and losers in normalization with occupation status.
Egypt’s apparent lack of enthusiasm for its role as mediator could be because it needs US support in its negotiations with Ethiopia on the Great Renaissance Dam on the Nile River, and does not want to do anything about Palestine-Israel that might upset to Washington. This is despite the fact that Palestine needs to maintain good relations with all countries and parties and build an international support network.
During his visit to Turkey, Haniyeh met with Erdogan, suggesting that Turkey’s actions are increasing at the expense of some Arab states, especially Egypt. The Palestinians may be eager to ask Turkey for support, but can Ankara replace Cairo?
The Palestinians hope that the Istanbul talks will pave the way for a comprehensive national strategy to confront Israel, in light of the wave of normalization with the occupation state. American and Israeli attempts to liquidate the Palestinian cause are also of great concern. Even if they reconcile and present a united front, the Palestinians need the support of friends and allies to form a significant Arab and Muslim bloc, which can support their position and reject the normalization of some Arab regimes. It seems that Turkey is inclined to accept that role, rejecting normalization and keeping the same distance from all Palestinian parties, including Fatah and Hamas.
I heard from Egypt that Cairo tried to hold meetings with the leaders of Fatah and Hamas, but the invitation was rejected, perhaps due to the possibility that Haniyeh would be detained and not allowed to complete his regional and international tour. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia lobbied Lebanon not to host the secretary-general’s meeting, but Iran and Hezbollah used their influence to block the Saudi effort to derail reconciliation efforts.
Israel and the United States are also concerned about these meetings and oppose any step that could unite the Palestinians. That is possibly another reason for Egypt’s apparent disinterest.
The Hamas-Fatah meetings in Istanbul were framed in the context of the Palestinian Authority’s attempt to withdraw from the Saudi Arabia-Egypt axis and reconcile with Hamas, after sensing the imminent collapse of this alliance in which the political leadership in Palestine has supported for years. The Palestinian Authority is also in a corner due to the recent Arab normalization with Israel. Although there are concerns that Turkey’s increased influence could see Hamas take over, the normalization of the Gulf strengthens those who feel that the importance of involving Ankara outweighs any fears about the resistance movement.
However, the Palestinian Authority has assured Egypt that Turkey would not assume its role by holding the meetings at the Palestinian Embassy in Ankara instead of the seat of the Turkish presidency. In the diplomatic world, that was a canny move.
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The PA does not appear to be repositioning itself beyond its conventional regional alliances. The leadership was disappointed with Egypt’s recent position, but Abbas will not join the Turkish axis, which includes Qatar, Iran and Hamas, although he knows that the Cairo regime will not be able to avoid Saudi-UAE hegemony. Yet at the same time, the leadership of the Palestinian Authority believes that Egypt’s contributions will not meet its aspirations.
The Hamas-Fatah talks are taking place in challenging regional conditions. It is true that the Palestinians feel the need for an official, popular Arab support network, but this is a problem because several Arab candidates, including Egypt, are focusing on their internal crises. Furthermore, regional alliances with the Saudis and Emiratis, such as Egypt’s, have interests that conflict with those of Turkey.
The Palestinians seek to establish strong Arab and regional support that will enable them not only to implement the results of the Beirut and Istanbul meetings, but also to work on developing a comprehensive national program. Thus, the Palestinian political leadership knows that the regional situation paves the way for further external infiltration that will boost American and Israeli hegemony and hamper the efforts of Arab countries, especially Egypt, to empower the Palestinian cause. Turkey will likely then fill the resulting void.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.
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