Report: Palestinian unity gov't to be announced within 48 hours

The formation of a new technocratic Palestinian unity government is expected to be announced in the coming 48 hours, the Palestinian daily Al-Ayam reported Sunday.

According to the report, all outstanding issues between Hamas and Fatah have been resolved, with the exception of who will be the next Palestinian prime minister.

The prime minister will not be a member of Hamas, although Hamas is demanding that the candidate be affiliated with the group, as first reported in Haaretz. Abbas wants the prime minister to be entirely independent.


Hamas and Fatah have agreed that all government ministers will be technocrats chosen by the various parties, and that the PA diplomatic platform will be based on the 'Prisoner's Document.'

The document calls for a Palestinian state, alongside Israel, on all of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

Israeli officials have objected to the plan because it also endorses the "right of return" for Palestinian refugees to come back to lost properties in Israel, and endorses attacks in areas captured in the 1967 Six Day War, including the West Bank and East Jerusalem.