AP News, June 26th, 2007
Saudi Arabia and Egypt will not try to mediate the conflict between Hamas and Fatah for the time being, an Egyptian spokesman said Tuesday after a meeting between the leaders of the two powerhouse Arab nations.
Like other U.S. Arab allies, Egypt and Saudi Arabia have been focusing on how to bolster Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah movement in the wake of Hamas' takeover of the Gaza Strip. They want to prevent the Iran-backed Islamic radicals in Gaza from strengthening both fundamentalism and Iranian influence in the region.
"We are standing by the elected Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who is a symbol of Palestinian legitimacy, chosen by the Palestinian people in free and fair elections," Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's spokesman Suleiman Awwad told reporters after the meeting between Mubarak and Saudi King Abdullah.
Asked whether Egypt and Saudi Arabia will mediate between Abbas and Hamas, Awwad said: "We and the Palestinians need some time to calm down and for the two parties to be ready to resume dialogue."
Saudi officials did not comment after the meeting.
The Saudis, who do not have diplomatic relations with Israel, stayed away from a Monday summit that brought together Abbas, Israel's prime minister and Jordan's king here in Egypt.
Egypt and Saudi Arabia have much to lose in the intra-Palestinian struggle. A strong Hamas ruling Gaza could encourage Egypt's own powerful Islamic opposition, the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood. As a bastion of Sunni Islam and the Arab world's main power broker, conservative Saudi Arabia also worries about Hamas, which has strong links to the kingdom's main foe _ Shiite-ruled Iran _ and could empower Saudi Islamic militants in the kingdom.
Yet even as they back Fatah, Egypt and Saudi Arabia do not want to be seen as increasing the suffering of the 1.5 million Palestinians isolated in Gaza. During Monday's summit, Mubarak called for a dialogue between the two rival Palestinian factions.
