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| By Israel Insider staff August 12, 2007 |
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The rift between Hamas and Fatah, the bloody infighting and the apparent hopelessness of the current situation appear to have left Palestinians disillusioned and seeking alternatives. But from this chaos, a new group of moderates has arisen and announced plans to form a political party and possibly run in the elections. They aspire to be the Palestinian Kadima.
The group, which consists of 120 top businessmen and academics, is by Munib al-Masri, a well-known and respected billionaire from Nablus who is politically unaffiliated, according to the Jerusalem Post.
The members met for the first time this weekend in Ramallah, marking the first meeting of its kind in years.
"We want to offer the Palestinians something different and a new way," said a meeting attendee. "We are actually trying to set up a Palestinian version of the Israeli Kadima Party, which attracted voters from both Likud and Labor. We are aware of the fact that many Palestinians are disenchanted with Fatah and Hamas and would like to see a new party that can offer them a better future."
The group's primary goal is to reunite the Gaza Strip with Judea and Samaria (the West Bank), which were ripped apart by Hamas' bloody putsch in Gaza.
"We have no choice but to reunite the West Bank, which is under Fatah control, with the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip," Hani al-Masri said, a Palestinian columnist who serves as spokesman for the new group. "We condemn the coup that Hamas staged in the Gaza Strip and urge Hamas to reverse the situation there so that we can resume national dialogue between all the factions."
The group's first step is to outline its platform, and then, at the second stage, it would adopt the name "the Association of Businessmen and Academics", eventually transforming itself into a party.
"First, we want to see what the reactions are. That's why the forum will operate as a lobby only. If we succeed in selling the idea, we will declare ourselves as a political party," the spokesman said.
The group reportedly has PA Chairman Abbas' blessings. Abbas is currently struggling to establish himself as a moderate leader but is facing difficulty garnering support among the Palestinian people.
The desire to be the "Palestinian Kadima" may not be the great goal its aspirants hope it to be: the Israeli Kadima is floundering with about one-third to one-fourth of the support it won in its first election, according to recent polls. And its leader Ehud Olmert is the most unpopular leader in Israeli history.
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