AUGUST 30, 2026 14:51

Updated: AUGUST 30, 2026 17:13

Fatah Democratic Reform faction leaders are working to bring Hamas, Fatah and additional Palestinian groups together so they can concentrate on establishing a Palestinian state instead of remaining trapped in internal disputes.

The approach appears in a document Mohammed Dahlan circulated among faction colleagues and obtained by this publication.

The text presents a roadmap for resolving long-standing splits among Palestinian movements and stresses the need to replace rivalry with coordinated national efforts.

"We may disagree with Hamas, Islamic Jihad or the Palestinian Authority leadership, and serious differences may exist. Yet disagreement never justifies efforts to remove the other side," Dahlan stated in the letter.

"We want relations to shift from attempts to weaken each other toward joint work on building the homeland and safeguarding the national project."

From rivalry toward mediation

The inclusive tone stands out because Dahlan has faced tensions with both Hamas and Fatah in the past.

A former senior Fatah figure and legislative council member, he has resided in the United Arab Emirates since 2011 following accusations from the Palestinian Authority of involvement in a plot against Yasser Arafat, an attempted power grab and financial misconduct. Dahlan has rejected those claims.

His earlier dealings with Hamas involved sharp public criticism in 2006 over alleged corruption and reported participation in a United States-supported initiative aimed at removing the group from Gaza.

In recent months Dahlan has pursued dialogue, meeting Hamas representatives in Cairo to position his faction as a possible link between competing Palestinian organizations.

Dimitri Diliani, a former Revolutionary Council member and spokesperson for the breakaway faction, told this publication that Dahlan engages with all Palestinian groups because the faction operates through established institutions.

Diliani described the contacts as routine daily exchanges with every faction and noted that Dahlan presence often helps resolve matters by highlighting their significance.

"His established ties with many faction leaders ease discussions," Diliani added, stating that Dahlan credibility now exceeds that of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas due to humanitarian work during the Gaza crisis.

Dahlan role in the UAE

Serving as an adviser to UAE authorities, Dahlan has supported delivery of tens of millions of dollars in assistance to Gaza, reaching both Hamas supporters and secular households and increasing his standing in the territory.

This record strengthens his call for Palestinian pluralism.

Key elements of the vision include protecting rights, freedoms and dignity for all Palestinians, involving citizens in decisions and enforcing accountability and transparency across institutions.

The plan also urges an end to cycles of armed clashes, retaliatory measures and power contests that have marked Palestinian leadership.

"Internal fighting constituted a national crime," Dahlan wrote. "Weapons do not decide governance, and force does not grant legitimacy."

Since Hamas removed the Palestinian Authority from Gaza in 2007, occasional clashes between factions have continued.

In December 2024 Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas opposed Palestinian Authority operations against armed groups in Jenin, with Hamas urging mobilization against security forces in the West Bank.

"We do not seek to erase factions, their identities or histories, and each group may keep its program and compete publicly. What must change is the relationship with the state. A faction may gain power yet must not become the state," Dahlan maintained.

"The state must serve as neutral ground for all, with no faction dominating the judiciary, security, administration or public employment."

While some may read Dahlan remarks as critical of Hamas, Diliani emphasized that Palestinian Authority corruption and financial shortcomings have also damaged society and require major reform.

The document leaves open the precise role Hamas could hold in any political framework, especially as the group plans to contest upcoming legislative elections in November.

Diliani indicated that Hamas ideas would still find representation even if the movement does not field candidates directly.

He called for temporary popular mandates through elections to shift institutional authority between groups according to majority will rather than allocating state posts as factional shares.

Dahlan argued that weapons must be barred from internal disputes and coups must not recur, opposing any single authority deciding unilaterally on war or peace.

While the vision rejects factional violence for political ends, Diliani stressed that the group does not aim to end Palestinian resistance to Israeli occupation.

"As long as military occupation persists, Hamas, Fatah, Islamic Jihad, PFLP, DFLP and others will remain. Names may change, yet resistance will continue," Diliani asserted.

"Only those who fail to understand the situation believe resistance will end. Such views are losing influence on the world stage."

Diliani described all resistance forms as lawful under international law against occupation yet personally viewed violence as unethical and likely to produce a failed society, advocating instead for peace.

"Our faction regards the State of Israel as a state with which we must reach peace under international law. We do not judge its character."

"It is not our concern, and we ask that state to respect our right to determine our own makeup while viewing us as a people with whom peace must be made for mutual survival in the Middle East," he concluded.