Visiting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday
expressed optimism that the political and financial siege on the
Palestinians would be gradually lifted.
Abbas made the statement at a press conference in Cairo after
his meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on the latest
developments in the violence-stricken Gaza Strip, during which he
said he discussed with the Egyptian leader the outcome of his
recent European tour.
Abbas, who arrived in Cairo on Friday after a seven-nation
European tour to persuade Europe to resume aid and dealings with
the new Palestinian government grouping Hamas and Fatah movements,
said that it is possible that the international siege on the
Palestinian people would be gradually lifted.
Direct financial aid to the Palestinian Authority was frozen
after Hamas who refused the international demands single-handedly
took office last year.
But after the inauguration of the current unity government,
Abbas has argued the cutoff should be lifted as the new government
absorbed the more moderate Fatah party as well.
On the issue to restore security control and halt Israeli
aggressions to revive peace process in the Middle East, Abbas said
the only way to stop this aggression is to return calmness to Gaza
first and then in the West Bank.
He noted that this was what had been agreed upon but
unfortunately violated by both sides of Israel and the
Palestinians.
Abbas met with the exiled head of Hamas' political bureau Khaled
Meshaal on Friday night, the first of its kind since the
inauguration of the new government, to probe means of stabilizing
the truce and lifting siege imposed on the Palestinians by the West
along with other issues.
(Xinhua News Agency April 29, 2007)
