High-level delegations from the Fatah movement, which dominates the Palestinian Authority (PA), and influential former top official Mohammed Dahlan’s Democratic Reform bloc have convened in the Egyptian city of Alamein for critical reconciliation talks ahead of Palestinian legislative elections. The meeting on Monday, publicised by Democratic Reform, comes as Fatah’s rivals – including Dahlan’s group and Hamas – discuss forming a broad coalition that could pose a significant challenge to the party in November’s elections. Monday’s meetings were led by PA Vice President Hussein al-Sheikh, a senior Fatah official, and Democratic Reform’s deputy leader Samir al-Mashharawi.
Although al-Mashharawi described the initial atmosphere in Alamein as positive, he added that nothing “practical” had yet been agreed and said that PA President Mahmoud Abbas needed to make “decisive decisions” in order to unite the Fatah movement. Democratic Reform is largely made up of ex-Fatah officials who have broken away over differences with Abbas. He defended Democratic Reform’s recent dialogue with other Palestinian factions, saying that “any alliances in the upcoming elections do not target the Fatah movement or its leadership”.
Hamas official Husam Badran told Al Jazeera last week that the Palestinian group had met recently with officials from Democratic Reform – as well as Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – with the aim of forming a national bloc to contest the elections, the first since 2006. The meeting with Dahlan was notable because Hamas and the Democratic Reform leader were opponents in Gaza for years, during Dahlan’s time as one of Fatah’s most powerful officials in the enclave. That culminated in the 2007 conflict between Hamas and Fatah, which led to Fatah being forced out of Gaza.
The proposed anti-Fatah bloc has alarmed the movement’s leadership, and was the main driver behind Monday’s meeting, according to political analyst Ahmed al-Tanani. Fatah’s attempt to prevent the coalition from forming highlights the dangers it presents. Any coalition would emphasise Fatah’s divisions, because Democratic Reform is a breakaway Fatah faction, and its members are still associated with the movement.
It could also bring several disparate Palestinian factions together in a common challenge to the leadership of Abbas, who is now 90 years old and facing widespread opposition. Gaza-based analyst Eyad al-Qarra said that a Dahlan-Hamas electoral coalition would allow Hamas to have more legitimacy to govern if it won, even after it announced that it was dissolving its administration in Gaza. Dahlan would also be able to present himself in a positive light internationally.
Given Abbas’s advanced age, there is also the question of Fatah’s succession planning, with Dahlan being presented among the possible names. But al-Tanani said it was too early to suggest that Monday’s meeting could portend an improvement in Dahlan’s chances. He explained that absorbing Democratic Reform “would mean a widespread internal coup and a threat to the interests of the current leadership”.
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