Reuters has reported, and Voice of America highlighted: "China to host unity talks for Palestine between Hamas and Fatah" on April 26, 2024.

A Fatah official informed Reuters that their delegation, led by Azzam al-Ahmed, had departed for China. Similarly, a Hamas official noted that their negotiation team, under Musa Abu Marzook, planned to leave for China later that night.

On the same day, during a routine press conference, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin did not mention the Fatah-Hamas meeting. However, he emphasized, “We support strengthening the Palestinian National Authority's officials. We advocate for all Palestinian groups to achieve reconciliation and boost solidarity through dialogue and consultation.”

China Caught the US Off-Guard

While other nations have also attempted to reconcile Fatah and Hamas, China's efforts are notably significant for two main reasons:

1) The People's Republic of China has previously demonstrated its capability to mediate between opposing nations, notably during the Iran-Saudi Arabia peace. 

In a surprising development, China hosted the negotiations in Beijing, leading to an agreement on March 10, 2023. The image of officials from the three countries holding hands sent shockwaves through the West, particularly the US.

CIA Director William Burns conveyed his frustration with Saudi Arabia’s foreign policy direction to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, stating, "By reaching an agreement with Iran through China’s mediation, you caught us off guard," as reported by the Wall Street Journal on April 7, 2023.

Abbas’s Request to Xi

2) China's capacity for peacemaking has captured the attention of the Palestinians, who desperately need peace. Three months following the mediated Saudi-Iran peace, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas visited Beijing. During this visit, Xi Jinping and Mahmoud Abbas declared a "strategic partnership," as reported by CGTN Türk on June 14, 2023.

Significantly, Mahmoud Abbas, lauding China’s role in fostering peace in the Middle East, requested Xi Jinping’s mediation in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict as well.

Responding to this request, Xi Jinping outlined three proposals for a "fair solution":

i) The sole path to resolving the Palestinian issue is establishing a fully sovereign and independent State of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital, based on the 1967 borders.

ii) The economic needs and quality of life of the Palestinian people must be ensured.

iii) Fidelity to the proper course of peace negotiations must be maintained.

Solving the Two-Part Problem

Achieving a consensus between Fatah and Hamas is crucial given the existence of a divided Palestine, with the West Bank and Gaza governed by separate administrations. This division, a strategy finely crafted by Israel and the US, has hindered peace efforts. China’s mediation could pave the way for recognizing the State of Palestine, spotlighted again by the Al-Aqsa Flood.

Broadening the view, China's ongoing peace efforts, as announced in its Global Security Initiative, are significant. Its peace proposals for the Ukraine-Russia conflict are also under consideration.

This development underscores the stark contrasts in global power dynamics between the US and China: the US has recently been perceived as a major power that instigates conflicts but fails to broker peace, while China seeks to eliminate tensions, setting the stage for peaceful resolutions.