Baraka: Qinawi's meeting with Mishaal to discuss pending dialog issues

DAMASCUS, (PIC)-- Ali Baraka, the deputy representative of Hamas in Syria, stated Saturday that deputy Egyptian intelligence director Omar Al-Qinawi's intended meeting during his visit to Damascus with Khaled Mishaal, the head of the Hamas political bureau, comes in the context of following up the file of the inter-Palestinian dialog before resuming it in April. In an exclusive statement to the PIC, Baraka said that during the meeting the two sides will discuss outstanding issues in the national dialog including the formation of the Palestinian government and its agenda and the electoral system. He underlined that his Movement wants the next premier to be selected in accordance with the Palestinian basic law which stipulates that the majority bloc in the PLC has the right to choose the next premier of the Palestinian government providing that he should be approved by other Palestinian factions. In the same context, Baraka reiterated his Movement's rejection of appointing Salam Fayyad as the next premier, noting that Hamas has a veto on Fayyad and thus he can never be in the government. With regard to the government agenda and the pressures being made on the Movement to recognize the Israeli occupation and the PLO's agreements, Baraka explained that his Movement would not accept that the agenda of the next government includes recognition of Israel and for this reason Hamas refuses the PLO's previous agreements with Israel and the international quartet's terms. As for the electoral system, he pointed out that his Movement insists on the mixed electoral system regarding the legislative elections, where it must be taken into consideration that not all the Palestinian people belong to political factions or organizations because there are independent individuals and representatives of clans, adding that the election law which was followed in the 2006 elections was the law of the mixed system.