Yemen president calls for Doha reconciliation for Palestinians
SANAA (AFP) — Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh on Sunday called for rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah to hold a dialogue in Qatar like the Doha forum which produced a political accord for Lebanon.
Saleh, who met with visiting Hamas political supremo Khaled Meshaal, told reporters they had discussed "ways to overcome the differences between the Palestinian factions."
The Yemeni leader, quoted by the state news agency Saba, said he had proposals which were supported by the Arab League and countries such as Egypt, Syria, Saudi Arabia and Sudan, without giving details.
"Just like Qatar managed to reconcile the Lebanese political forces, we hope Qatar will host an inter-Palestinian meeting," said Saleh, referring to the Doha accord of May 21 which followed a months-long political crisis in Beirut.
In March, Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas's Fatah party and the Islamist movement Hamas reached a Yemeni-brokered deal to open their first direct talks since the Islamists' seizure of the Gaza Strip in June 2007.
Saleh said at the time he was ready to host the dialogue from early April but the talks have so far failed to materialise.
Later on Sunday, Saleh telephoned the emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, to propose an inter-Palestinian dialogue in Doha that would "serve the peace process in the region," Saba reported.
