GAZA, Sept. 24 (Xinhua) -- Hamas and Fatah, the two major rival Palestinian factions, announced on Thursday their agreement on a joint vision for achieving internal reconciliation and holding general elections in the Palestinian territories.
The announcement came after a three-day dialogue between the two factions in Turkey.
According to a joint statement sent to Xinhua, the dialogue in Turkey, an extension of the online national conference simultaneously held in Ramallah and Lebanon's capital Beirut on Sept. 3, ended with both Hamas, ruler of the Gaza Strip, and Fatah led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas committed to "working jointly to confront all conspiracies until the achievement of full independence represented by establishing an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital."
"The two movements will present their vision for a comprehensive dialogue with the participation of of all the other Palestinian factions," the statement said.
The final agreement will be announced before Oct. 1 in an online conference chaired by Abbas and in the presence of secretary-generals of 14 Palestinian factions including Fatah and Hamas, it added.
Meanwhile, a well-informed Palestinian source told Xinhua that Fatah and Hamas also agreed in principle to hold presidential and legislative elections in Palestine by the end of this year.
But differences remained over the mechanism for holding elections, how to control the situation in the Palestinian territories and the jurisdiction of the Hamas-run courts in Gaza, the source said on condition of anonymity. Enditem
