Palestinian President agrees unity government with Hamas

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said today his moderate Fatah party and the ruling Hamas party have agreed to form a coalition government that could be constituted in a matter of days.

"Hopefully in the coming days we will begin forming the government of national unity," Abbas said.

It is hoped that the formation of such a government will lead to the lifting of crippling international sanctions that have stalled the functioning of the current Palestinian government led by Hamas.

The two sides have been negotiating for months to form such a coalition. There were no immediate details on the provisions of the coalition agreement, but said it was based on a proposal that implies recognition of Israel.

The West and Israel have been withholding hundreds of millions of dollars from the Hamas-led government, which swept January parliamentary elections, demanding that the group disarm, recognize Israel and accept existing peace agreements.

The chief Palestinian negotiator, Saeb Erekat, said final details had to be ironed out.