PLO official: Had Hamas wanted unity with PLO we would have had “a Palestinian state, at least within the 1967 borders”
The video shows Tulkarem District Governor Abdallah Kmeil speaking on Fatah-run Awdah TV
Tulkarem District Governor Abdallah Kmeil: "Hamas came to be a substitute for the PLO. It never saw itself as a partner of the PLO or the national action factions... Unfortunately, Hamas sometimes treated the PA as if it were an enemy, and the proof of this is that it took over Gaza by force of arms... Over the recent period Hamas has not agreed and does not agree to national unity. It wants a unity that will ensure its control over the PLO, control over the political system. It's impossible. You want partnership? Come on, let's do a partnership, and I'm in favor, and all of us in Fatah are in favor of national unity. National unity is sacred for us. We know, feel, and completely understand that national unity is the key to victory. Without unity, we cannot win. They [Hamas] do not understand this… If they understood this, undoubtedly the situation now would be different, and undoubtedly tens of thousands of Martyrs would not have died, and we might now be in a Palestinian state, at least within the June 4, 1967 borders."
[PA Tulkarem District Governorate, Facebook page, Jan. 18, 2025]