Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Tuesday that the two Palestinian movements, Fatah and Hamas, can form a unity government for the reconstruction of the war-torn Gaza Strip, Xinhua reported referring to Norwegian news agency NTB.
"Of course, we want to form a unity government with Hamas. Why not?" NTB quoted Abbas as telling a press conference in Oslo after talks with Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg.
Efforts to form a unity government between Fatah and Hamas have failed in the past. Reconciliation talks are scheduled to begin in Egypt later this week.
"We are now trying to bring about a reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas. We can't deny that Hamas is one part of Palestinian people. So we want to negotiate with them about a unity government," Abbas said.
Stoltenberg also called for Palestinian reconciliation and the international community to stay engaged in the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.
"Palestinian reconciliation and a unity government are needed to get the peace process back on track," Stoltenberg said at the press conference, adding that Norway fully supports Egypt's efforts to bring the Palestinian factions together for peace.