Earlier this year, Hamas and Fatah agreed to a power-sharing accord in another step toward healing the rift between the two Palestinian organizations.
Key Players in Hamas and Fatah
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, the founder of the Fatah movement, died in November 2004. (AP)
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has been in power since succeeding Yasser Arafat in January 2005. He is shown at a 2009 Fatah conference in the West Bank town of Bethlehem. (AP)
Hamas leader Ismail Hanieh speaks during a rally supporting candidates from the group for 2006 parliamentary elections. Hamas defeated Fatah in the polls. (AP)
In this photo taken September 24, 2010, Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal, right, shakes hands with Fatah official Azzam al-Ahmad during a meeting in Damascus, Syria on reconciling their organizations. (AP)
Palestinians wave flags and chant during a rally celebrating the planned signing of a reconciliation agreement between Fatah and Hamas, in the West Bank city of Ramallah, May 4, 2011. (AP)
Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, center, and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, left, and Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal, right, talk together in Doha, Qatar, on February. 6, 2012. (AP)