United Palestinians key to peace

The long-awaited reconciliation deal between the Palestinian movements of Hamas and Fatah has finally been signed in the Egyptian capital city of Cairo.

To talk more on this historic event and the developments affecting Palestine, Press TV interviewed Professor Manuel Hassassian, Palestinian ambassador to Britain.

Press TV: Professor Hassassian, what is your reaction on the progress of unity agreement between Hamas and Fatah?

Manuel Hassassian: Well, basically it has been a long overdue kind of an agreement. I think the Palestinian people have suffered enough during the last four years from the internal divisions, that alone Israel has capitalized on this internal division not to make any kind of progress in the peace process. But it is not that Hamas and Fatah were prepared to sign the agreement but there were objective conditions that pushed Fatah and Hamas to make and clinch this deal.

One of them is the failure of the peace process and the stubbornness of Israel. The second is the impact of the Arab spring and the Arab revolts. The third is the long frustration of the Palestinian people from these internal divisions. These were the conditions that prompted Hamas and Fatah to understand the political realities that they cannot continue being internalized and factionalized along the times when we see in the Arab world dramatic changes towards democracy, towards reform and change. So to end occupation, we needed a united front and thank God that this united front now is in the offing.

Press TV: How will it work?

Manuel Hassassian: Definitely it has to work. Because there is the determination on both sides that it has to work and once we have the political will it will work. First of all if we agree that we should have a technocratic government with independence being involved, I think that will solve at least 90 percent of the problem. The major issue here is the issue of security. And the major issue is the issue of people carrying arms.

We cannot continue having different factions carrying arms and claiming each the path towards independence and the end of occupation. If we defactionalize the security apparatus which is the major challenge that face Hamas and Fatah, then we are the right direction where security forces should be neutral and where they would support the formation of any government in the future.

Press TV: But with your respect Professor Hassassian, the people of Palestine and the people who support Palestinian rights do not care about how you make it work. They just want it to work. They desperately want it to work.

Manuel Hassassian: Sure. We desperately need it to work. The international community needs it to work and I think the Arab world needs it to work and above all the Palestinian factions need it to work. They have gone into difficult debates over the last two years to get this reconciliation being implemented.

Now we see at least a light at the end of the tunnel. Now we see that our democracy is being restored that has been lost. Now we see the attitude of revitalizing the Palestinian legislative counsel. Now we see elections coming forward. Now we see the entire democratic process of the Palestinian of which we have always been proud of is coming back to its natural life. The challenges are Israel and the United States. To what extend are they going to receive this national unity government or this unity over the Palestinian people which I think this kind of unity will bring long lasting peace.

It is not a factionalized society that can really have peace with the Israelis with one big portion being outside the entire game. It is the united Palestinians that will bring longevity and sustainability to peace if the Israelis understand that there is no other choice except a political solution to this conflict.

Press TV: So the rest of the international community really needs to get on board with this.

Manuel Hassassian: I think the international community should support the Palestinians and this is a great move. They have been also relieved from trying to help the Palestinians. When they were divided, they — the international community — were also divided in this issue.

Thank God now we have one Palestinian people, one united government representing them hopefully and we have one international community that is not divided between Hamas and Fatah.