Delegations from Hamas and Fatah met in Cairo to discuss forming a unity government on January 17. The meeting saw the implementation of agreements signed between the two parties that set a timetable for Palestinian unity. They expressed a wish to have the unity government idea revived by the end of January. The groundwork was laid for reconciliation back in 2011, but negotiations broke down.
There has been friction between the two parties ever since Hamas ousted the ruling Fatah faction from Gaza in 2007. As the dust from the fighting began to settle, Hamas was throwing Fatah members off rooftops, and Fatah was carrying out reprisals in the West Bank. So when talks of unity between the two factions began, much of the world reacted with doubt.
