In These New Times

PressTV

1st May, 2011

A senior Iranian official says the recent unity agreement between the two Palestinian main factions, Fatah and Hamas, is the result of Islamic awakening in the Arab world.

“Unity between the two Palestinian movements, Fatah and Hamas, to achieve national reconciliation and form a Palestinian government is one of the most significant consequences of the Islamic awakening in the region (Middle East and North Africa),” Secretary of Iran’s Expediency Council Mohsen Rezaei told IRNA on Sunday.

The Iranian official predicted more of such developments in the region as a result of the Islamic awakening.

On April 27, the Palestinian factions issued a statement, saying they had reached an “understanding” in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, to set up a transitional unity government and hold elections.

On the future of Iran-Egypt ties, Rezaei made a reference to the willingness among the both countries’ officials to expand mutual ties, describing the prospect as “promising.”

Elsewhere in his remarks, Rezaei discounted the possibility of the West’s and NATO’s success in their attempts to disintegrate Libya.

The senior Iranian official, however, warned that in case the oil-rich part of Libya is separated, the other parts of the country will be almost a barren desert where poverty will severely harm the people.

In recent months, a wave of revolutions and anti-government uprisings has swept the Arab world.

In January, a revolution in Tunisia ended the 23-year ruling of former President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

In February, another revolution led to the ouster of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak after three decades of authoritarian rule.

Other revolutions have erupted in Libya, Yemen and Bahrain, while more anti-government upheavals have swept Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Oman, Kuwait and Algeria.

Meanwhile, more Arab countries are expected to witness similar revolts.