Egypt renews push to end Palestinian split

RAMALLAH, Palestinian Territory – Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is sending a delegation to Cairo to hear more about Egyptian attempts to broker an elusive reconciliation deal between him and his political rival Hamas.

Hamas leaders said after a meeting with Egyptian officials in Cairo earlier this week that they are ready to discuss reconciliation without conditions. Azzam al-Ahmed, an Abbas representative, says his team arrives Friday.

Palestinians have been split politically and geographically since 2007, when the Islamic militant Hamas drove forces loyal to Abbas from Gaza, leaving him with autonomous enclaves in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Repeated attempts at reconciliation have failed.

It’s not clear how Egypt’s latest effort aligns with its previous tacit support for a separate Gaza power-sharing deal between Hamas and Mohammed Dahlan, an exiled former Abbas aide-turned-rival.