CAIRO: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, accompanied by a delegation arrived in Cairo last Thursday on a four-day visit and have been holding talks with Egypt's Head of the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), Field Marshall Hussein Tantawi, and Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf regarding the Palestinian Reconciliation issues. The meetings were also attended by Chief of Staff of the Egyptian Armed Forces Sami Anan, Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil El-Arabi, Egyptian Intelligence Chief General Murad Mowafi and the Palestinian Ambassador to Cairo. The two sides stressed on the importance of the continued dialogue between the two sides to end the Palestinian internal dispute and solve the rift between Hamas and Fatah. They also discussed how Egypt would support the Palestinian cause under the country's current circumstances. The meeting between the Palestinian and Egyptian sides stressed on the need for exerting efforts to revive the peace process in light of the current events in the Middle East. This is the first visit by the Palestinian Leader since Egypt's former President Hosni Mubarak stepped down on February 11. Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said Abbas was willing to travel to Gaza Strip to work towards reconciliation between his Fatah movement and Hamas, which took control of the strip 7 years ago, reported the Associated Press. The statement came after Erakat and Abbas held talks with Secretary-General of the Arab League Amr Moussa in Cairo late Wednesday. For his part, Abbas commended the strong ties that bind Palestine and Egypt, hoping Egypt would overcome the current circumstances and retrieve its Arab and regional role. BM
