Hamas hails Russia offer to host talks with rival Fatah

Hamas on Friday welcomed the announcement of a Russian initiative aimed at rejuvenating efforts to achieve inter-Palestinian reconciliation.

In a statement, Hamas said it welcomed Moscow's offer to host a meeting between it and Fatah in hopes of ending more than a decade of bitter division between the rival Palestinian factions.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting with Palestinian counterpart Riyad al-Maliki, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Friday confirmed Moscow's readiness to host talks between Fatah, Hamas and other Palestinian factions.

Years of Palestinian disunity, Lavrov said, had hindered the launch of direct talks with Israel.

In late November, Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh received an official invitation to visit Moscow. The date of the visit, however, has yet to be announced.

The Israeli-occupied West Bank and the blockaded Gaza Strip have remained politically divided since 2007, when Hamas wrested control of the latter from Fatah following days of street fighting.