Palestinian factions in Cairo for reconciliation talks yesterday agreed to hold general elections by the end of 2018, Reuters reports. While the exact date for the elections hasn’t been pinned down, the factions deferred to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to choose the final date. The talks weren’t all smooth though with the Hamas side expressing concern about the lifting of sanctions on Gaza and the permanent opening of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, two issues that the talks failed to address and that Abbas said he would work toward. The Fatah side still insists it will take complete administrative control of Gaza by 1 December as planned, with further talks and a visit by an Egyptian security delegation to Gaza to oversee the handover set for December.

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