The Western-backed Palestinian prime minister Salam Fayyad stepped down on Saturday to try to pave the way for the formation of a national unity government and reconciliation with Hamas. "Prime minister Salam Fayyad has submitted his resignation from the government of president Mahmud Abbas. This resignation will take effect following the formation of a national consensus government by the end of this month," the statement said.
Fayyad, a politically independent former World Bank economist, was appointed premier following the Islamist Hamas movements bloody take-over of the Gaza Strip in June 2007, which cleaved the Palestinians into two hostile camps. Palestinian factions met in Cairo on February 26 to launch a reconciliation process aimed at forming a national unity government in the wake of Israels massive offensive against Gaza at the turn of the year.
The factions, including Hamas and Abbass secular Fatah party, agreed to form five committees to oversee the creation of a government that would supervise Gaza reconstruction and prepare for presidential and parliamentary elections in January 2010. "We consider that the positive climate seen in the first round of dialogue offers an opportunity that has to be exploited to put an end to divisions and as a basis on which to reach unity and reconciliation," Fayyads office said.
The committees are set to convene in Cairo on Tuesday, and Abbas said Fayyad would remain as acting prime minister while the talks continue. "We have asked Salam Fayyad to continue his work until we see the results of the dialogue," Abbas told reporters in Ramallah. In his more than 18 months as premier Fayyad has won praise from Western and Israeli leaders for spearheading political and economic reforms and launching a security crackdown in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.