Husam Khadir, a former member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, who was recently released from the prisons of the occupation, has called for national unity.
He said: ‘All prisoners regardless of their affiliations call on the political leaders to restore unity and accord among the various stripes and factions and end the state of division and estrangement between the two parts of the homeland.’
In an interview with Hamas-backed newspaper Filastin, Khadir spoke about dialogue as an important demand by the prisoners and called for the need to abolish political detention.
He also called for the reforming of the Fatah movement by holding its sixth congress in accordance with national principles that preserve the movement.
Khadir stressed that his message and that of all the prisoners is that everyone should unite under the name of Palestine and work to remove political differences and end internal fighting, which has only brought calamities upon all the Palestinian people.
He called for the need to intensify efforts by the political leaders, above all the leaders of Fatah and Hamas, in order to forget the past and return to Palestinian dialogue, which is the only way out of the state of division and disarray that only serves the occupier.
He added: ‘We in the Palestinian factions did not join this or that faction except for the sake of Palestine.
‘If the compass does not point to Palestine, there is no value for our affiliations, which will then focus on the implementation of narrow projects, which does not serve the people or homeland.’
Khadir emphasised that unity is the demand of everyone.
He said: ‘Without unity there is no issue.
‘What happened in Gaza bleeds the heart and eye. We are capable of standing up again, suppressing the anger, and forgetting the past for the sake of unity.’
He pointed out that unity and accord among all prisoners regardless of their affiliations is the situation prevailing in prisons.
The continuation of differences among the factions, especially between Fatah and Hamas, increases the suffering of the prisoners.
Khadir said: ‘The recent liberation of the prisoners was a turning point in how the occupying state perceived this issue.
‘The Palestinian negotiator must entrench himself behind this turning point and do his best to secure the release of all prisoners.’
He urged the Palestinian leaderships in the two parts of the homeland to ban political detention.
In this regard, he said: ‘In the blessed month of Ramadan, I appeal to the brothers in Fatah to immediately release all political detainees in the West Bank.
‘At the same time, I appeal to the brothers in Hamas in Gaza to release all the prisoners they are holding.
‘The two sides must unite in one crucible in order to secure the release of the prisoners held by the occupation.’
Khadir said: ‘All leaders in Fatah and other factions are with President Abu-Mazen (Mahmud Abbas) as long as he supports the rights and dignity of the citizens and as long as he is the watchful eye over the people’s comfort.
‘However, at the same time, we are against wrong practices.
‘We need to rebuild a new infrastructure for our people and strengthen our identity and steadfastness.
‘We do not want a political plan that takes us back to square one.’
Separately, Islamic Jihad Secretary General Ramadan Shallah has cautioned against allowing the date of 9 January 2009 to arrive without having first emerged from the current state of division on the Palestinian scene because in that case, the situation will become more tragic.
In a statement to Al-Hayat, he said: ‘If we arrive at the date of 9 January 2009 without reaching an agreement to end the division, we are definitely moving towards a new chapter of conflict that will make the picture on the Palestinian scene even more tragic.’
He stressed that the only way out of a new round of polarisation is to reach a solution before this date. It should be noted that this date is the date of the Palestinian presidential election.
Shallah pointed out that it is difficult to find a solution to the current crisis if the Palestinians are left alone to manage the affair by themselves.
He remarked: ‘It is necessary to have an Arab role able to exercise some form of moral pressure and influence over the disputing parties.
‘I believe that Egypt is the most likely candidate to carry out this role because of its geographical proximity, its historical connection with the Palestinian cause, and the importance of the Gaza Strip, which lies at Egypt’s flank, to that country’s national security.’
Regarding his expectations about a dialogue’s success in reaching an agreement that would put an end to the state of division on the Palestinian scene, he commented: ‘We sensed a real wish and resolve on the part of the brothers in Egypt to make the dialogue a success to end the division and restore cohesion to the Palestinian ranks.’
He explained that in its bilateral talks with each Palestinian faction, Egypt discusses each faction’s detailed views on its vision of and possibility of a solution and the way of ending the crisis and in the end the meetings might produce a compromise formula that will be acceptable to all sides.
He pointed out that ‘this task will require a great and continuous effort to bring the views of the various parties closer to each other.’
He added: ‘We showed willingness to cooperate with the brothers in Fatah and Hamas to help bridge the gap between them.’
He expressed hope that this will take place and welcomed the Arab countries’ help in handling the crisis.
Responding to a comment that a dialogue would primarily serve President Mahmud Abbas’ interests, Shallah replied: ‘A dialogue serves everyone though it serves Abu-Mazen (Abbas) in the first place because he draws his legitimacy from his people and from the reality in the Palestinian street.’
Shallah pointed out that the new reality against the background of the division is not in his interest because with the passage of time things become more complicated and it will become harder to heal the breach and restore cohesion among the Palestinian masses.
He added: ‘For this reason, the sooner we have a dialogue, the more willing the two sides will be to make mutual concessions for the sake of the supreme national interest.’
Shallah maintained that the dialogue’s success hinges on the two sides’ wishes and resolve.
He pointed out: ‘This is much better than making painful concessions from our cause and national rights to the Israeli enemy.’
He reminded everyone that ‘the division serves only the Israeli enemy and this situation that causes hardship to the Palestinian people is ideal for Israel.’
Commenting on the most complex issues on the dialogue’s agenda, he said: ‘There are two files on the Palestinian scene.
‘One is how to manage the conflict with the enemy and the other is the internal Palestinian relations.
‘I believe that it is a disgrace to close the conflict file with the enemy even under the headline of calm – which is useless anyway – and allow the internal relations file to turn from fraternal relations of struggle into hostile relations.’
He stressed that ‘our basic and real struggle is with the Zionist enemy.
‘For this reason it is necessary to heal the breach within the Palestinian house and rearrange it so that the struggle against the Israelis can be seriously managed.’
He added: ‘The wager on a so-called political settlement and negotiations no longer exists.
‘We can read the writing on the wall. Abu-Mazen no longer has anything to bet on in the negotiations.
‘The only way out is to turn our attention to the domestic situation and remedy it to be able to face the task of confronting the enemy.’
