PA’s Abbas, Hamas’s Haniyeh, Meet for First Time in Six Years

In a historic moment, Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh shook hands in Algeria on Tuesday, possibly indicating the sides would renew efforts to broker reconciliation talks.

Abbas and Haniyeh, along with other leaders from Africa and beyond, were being hosted by Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune for his country’s 60-year anniversary of independence from France.

The handshake, their first documented meeting since 2016, came after years of severed relations between the sides following Hamas’s overthrow of Fatah in Gaza in 2007.

Prior to shaking hands, the two leaders and their delegations sat separately during the ceremony.

Algerian media called the meeting “historic,” although neither leader’s office released details of their conversation.

While Egypt has been the main site for Palestinian reconciliation negotiations, Algeria also hosted talks between the two sides earlier this year.