UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has strongly appealed to Palestinian parties to commit to the principles of the Road Map that seeks to have two States - a secure Israel to live in peace and security with an independent Palestine State, UN spokesman Martin Nesirky said here Wednesday.
The secretary-general made the appeal as the rival political parties Hamas and Fatah sign a unity agreement in Cairo, Egypt.
The secretary-general sent the UN special coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Robert Serry, to the Egyptian capital for the Wednesday signing of the agreement, Xinhua reported.
Serry stated last week that reconciliation between the two main Palestinian factions is essential for achieving a two-state solution and should take place in a manner that promotes the cause of peace.
Talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians have been stalled since late September following Israel's refusal to extend a 10-month freeze on settlement activity in the occupied Palestinian territory. That decision prompted Abbas to withdraw from direct talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which had only resumed a few weeks earlier after a two-year hiatus.
Last week representatives of Hamas and Fatah announced that they struck a deal, under the auspices of Egypt, to form a national unity government and hold elections within a year.
Ban voiced his support for efforts and for unity and the work of Egypt and Palestinian President Ban Ki-moon in this regard.
Hamas, which does not recognize Israel's right to exist, took control of the Gaza Strip in 2007 after ousting the Fatah party of the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas that controls parts of the West Bank.
Ban "wishes to see unity in the framework of the positions of the Quartet and the commitments of the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Arab Peace Initiative," Nesirky said at a daily news briefing. "The secretary-general therefore strongly appeals to all Palestinian parties to commit to these principles."
Under the Road Map peace plan endorsed by the Quartet - comprising the United Nations, the European Union, Russia and the United States - Israel and an independent State of Palestine established on territory occupied by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War would live side by side in peace and security within recognized borders.