Qatari FM due in Gaza to settle crisis: official

A Palestinian official said on Monday that Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jabir al-Thani's visit to the Gaza Strip would be "the final effort" to settle crisis over forming a new Palestinian government.

The Qatari minister would arrive in Gaza on Monday to meet separately with President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haneya, where he would present suggestions on the formation of a national unity government.

Qatar has presented a political plan of six points to bridge gaps between Abbas and Hamas' leadership over the formation of a unity government, said Yasser Abed Rabbo, member of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

If Qatari efforts failed, "the only exit would be an early election," Abed Rabbo told the Voice of Palestine.

According to press reports, the Qatari foreign minister has succeeded in getting the approval by Hamas politburo chief Khaled Mashaal of the Qatari initiative.

Abed Rabbo said that the Qatari plan was in line with a two- state solution to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and called for honoring the Arab Peace Initiative and activating the PLO.

But, sources close to the Hamas-led government denied on Monday that Qatar had presented an initiative of six points on the formation of a coalition government.

The sources said that they had no information on the Qatari plan. They also denied any response from Hamas politburo chief Khaled Mashaal in Damascus to such an initiative.

Abbas has held talks with the ruling Hamas movement to form a coalition government in a bid to overcome political and financial crises facing incumbent Hamas-led government.

However, the talks were deadlocked after Hamas refused to recognize Israel.

Source: Xinhua