President meets Hamas leader

President HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan has stressed the importance of Palestinian national unity in restoring the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people and achieving their goal of establishing an independent state, with Jerusalem as its capital.

Sheikh Khalifa made this call while receiving the Head of the Hamas
politburo Khaled Meshaal at Al Bateen Palace in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday. HH General Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces was present at the meeting.

The President said that the Palestinian national unity should form the
cornerstone of the movement as to help succeed a just and peaceful
settlement based on all the legitimate international resolutions as well as
the Arab Peace Initiative.

Sheikh Khalifa called on various factions on the Palestinian front to
triumph over differences and uphold the paramount interests of the
Palestinian people. He expressed optimism over the success of ongoing
efforts by Egypt to calm the strife as a way to put an end to the day-to-day
sufferings of the Palestinian people in the occupied lands in general, and
in Gaza in particular. He also expressed hope that the efforts to establish
comprehensive and just peace will succeed.

During the meeting with the Hamas strategist, Sheikh Khalifa reviewed the
overall progress of the truce talks with Israel, as well as the
Palestinaian-Palestinain Dialogue for achieving Palestinian national unity
defeating all forms of divisions in the Palestinian front. Khaled Meshaal
hailed Sheikh Khalifa's stance towards the Palestinian movement and his
benevolent support to the Palestinian people. - Emirates News Agency, WAM