Abbas, Hamas chief hold first talks since unity deal

RAMALLAH: Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas began talks with Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal in Doha on Monday in the first meeting since their rival movements signed a surprise unity deal, an official said.

The Palestinian leader flew to the Qatari capital on Sunday to meet emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani on Monday before attending a family wedding, the senior Palestinian official said. He then met the exiled Hamas leader, who has been based in Doha for more than two years after leaving his previous base in Damascus because of the bloodshed gripping Syria. The last time the two leaders met face-to-face was in Cairo in January 2013. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said that the two leaders were expected to meet in Qatar to "discuss the reconciliation agreement and how to implement it".

Abbas's Fatah movement, which dominates the Palestine Liberation Organization and rules the West Bank, has been locked in years of bitter rivalry with Meshaal's Hamas since the Islamist movement forcibly took over the Gaza Strip in 2007, ousting forces loyal to the president.