Abbas accepts Hamas offer of talks, could delay forming cabinet

Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas said Wednesday he was ready to put off forming his new cabinet to give the rival Hamas a chance to join a unity government. He also said Wednesday that he was "ready to go to Gaza tomorrow" to end the division with Hamas, reversing a stance taken Tuesday night by the PLO’s executive committee.

Reuters/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

In a speech at a meeting of the PLO Central Council, in which Hamas holds a majority, Abbas offered to delay forming a cabinet if Hamas and his Fatah party can come to an agreement “tomorrow or the day after”. 

His offer to travel to Gaza comes a day after thousands of Palestinians rallied in Gaza City and in the West Bank, calling for an end to the division between Hamas and Fatah.

Gaza's Hamas prime minister Ismail Haniya publicly invited Abbas for "immediate" unity talks in Gaza.

The Fatah-dominated PLO executive committee initially rejected the offer, saying the only solution lay in elections.

Hamas on Wednesday welcomed Abbas' planned visit.

"We will start preparing for the visit," a Hamas official told the AFP news agency.