by Sanaa Kamal

RAMALLAH, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) -- Hamas movement and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement try to put differences aside to hold general elections in the Palestinian territories, Palestinian political experts and observers said.

On Saturday, Ismail Haniyeh, the politburo chief of Hamas, addressed Abbas in an official letter, confirming that Hamas was ready to end the internal divisions and hold a general election.

Abbas welcomed the gesture and said he would support the initiative of ending divisions, building partnership, and accomplishing national unity.

He also invited Hana Nasser, chairman of the Palestinian Central Elections Commission, to discuss the procedures for issuing the decrees related to holding the elections.

"The road of holding general elections will not be easy. Nor will it be rosy as differences over understandings on the basis of partnership as well as other issues will start after issuing the decrees," Hani al-Masry, a West Bank political analyst, told Xinhua.

He believes that elections' success depends on reaching a national goal and coming up with a united front.

"The Palestinian Authority (PA) may face a crisis of international recognition if the legal legitimacy of its institutions is not renewed," Nabil Amro, a former Palestinian diplomat, told Xinhua.

"For this, I think they (Fatah and Hamas) want to catch the golden chance to succeed in holding those elections," he explained.

"Palestinians must regain their internal reconciliation to strengthen their position in the face of the unprecedented challenges that surround the Palestinian issue," Rajab Abu Sireya, a West Bank analyst, told Xinhua.

Abu Sireya said that the Palestinian people "should implement a reconciliation without delay."

The last presidential elections were held in the Palestinian territories in 2005, when Abbas was elected as the Palestinian president. Hamas won the parliamentary elections held in January 2006.

The internal Palestinian division between the two rival movements began when Hamas violently seized control of the Gaza Strip in 2007 and ousted President Abbas' security forces. Enditem

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