| Fatah–Hamas Mecca Agreement | |
| Location Signed: | Mecca, Saudi Arabia |
| Signatories: | |
| Parties: |
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| Language: | Arabic |
The Fatah–Hamas Mecca Agreement was signed between Fatah and Hamas in the city of Mecca on 8 February 2007, agreeing to stop the internal military confrontations in the Gaza Strip and form a government of national unity. Representatives from the Fatah side included the President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas and parliament member Mohammed Dahlan. The Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh and Khaled Mashal represented Hamas.
Under the agreement, Hamas agreed to "respect" PLO's previous agreements with Israel.[1] [2] [3]
The Mecca Agreement contains four determinations:
The text of the Mecca Agreement:[4]
The agreement was accompanied by a letter that authorized Hamas's leader Ismail Haniyeh to form a government, but on the condition that he "respect" agreements signed by the PLO, including the Oslo Accords. There was significant discussion as to what the word "respect" meant, as Hamas insisted it would "respect" PLO's agreements with Israel without fully "committing itself" to such agreements.
The agreement failed to unite the Palestinian National Authority and the Hamas Administration in Gaza. A further implementation agreement was signed in Doha in 2012, ratified by May 2012 Cairo agreement, both yet failing to promote joint elections. With the boycott of the Hamas, the Palestinian local elections of 2012 took place in October, without participation of Gazan residents.