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RAMALLAH. – Two rival Palestinian groups, Hamas and Fatah, have finally announced the ministers of their unity government amid threats from Israel.
Yesterday, the new cabinet was sworn in before acting Palestinian Authority (PA) Chief Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
The cabinet is led by current Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah and has 17 ministers, with at least nine of them newcomers.
Hamas authorities have hailed the establishment of a national unity government for all Palestinians.
“We hail the national consensus government, which represents all the Palestinian people,” media outlets quoted Hamas spokesman, Sami Abu Zuhri, as saying.
Leaders of both Hamas and Fatah hailed the formation of the new government after a brief ceremony which took place in Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
The developments come weeks after the rival groups took a major step to form a national unity government by hammering out a deal on new cabinet ministers.
Meanwhile, Israel has already denied three Gaza-based ministers passage to attend the ceremony.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called on other countries not to rush to recognize the new Palestinian government.
Netanyahu says PA chief should “tear up” the pact with Hamas, adding that Tel Aviv would not engage in talks with the Palestinian Authority while the group has the backing of Hamas.
Hamas and Fatah have been at odds since Hamas won the Palestinian parliamentary elections in January 2006. The dispute marginalized Hamas governance to the Palestinian territory of the Gaza Strip. Fatah, meanwhile, set up headquarters in the Palestinian territory of the West Bank.
Hamas and Fatah agreed to end their disputes and reconcile in late April. The move angered Tel Aviv which responded by ending the so-called peace talks with the Palestinian Authority. – Press TV.
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