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Fatah exits Great Return March, Hamas won't stop

Fatah is ending its involvement in the Great Return March, accusing rival Palestinian faction Hamas of changing and diluting the event's focus.
Palestinian demonstrators chant slogans during a protest demanding the right to return to their homeland, at the Israel-Gaza border, east of Gaza City May 18, 2018. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem - RC1239061830
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GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Fatah unexpectedly announced last week it was ending its participation in the Great Return March early, calling the actions of its rival faction Hamas during the protests "degenerate." Meanwhile, other Palestinian factions participating under the name of the Coordination Committee of the Great Return March announced the protests will continue until June 5, marking the anniversary of Israel’s occupation of Jerusalem in 1967.

In its May 16 statement, Fatah demanded the various Palestinian factions, including Hamas, form a committee to assess the march and address mistakes that occurred. Fatah gave no specific examples of such mistakes. The next step, it stressed, will be for the Palestinian National and Islamic Forces committee to examine plans for future activities.

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