The Qatari foreign minister yesterday presented Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh with a new proposal for resolving differences between Fatah and Hamas that are preventing the formation of a national unity government.

Sheikh Hamad al-Thani met with Abbas and Haniyeh in Gaza, after a meeting yesterday in Damascus with the head of Hamas' Politibureau, Khaled Meshal, and other officials.

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The details of the initiative have not been revealed. Abbas said last night that, "There are texts under discussion." Asked whether the Qatari mediation had failed, Abbas said: "The dialogue began on the basis of the Qatari mediation... Nothing has failed. We are on the path and therefore it cannot be said that something failed."

Palestinian politicians said the proposals included forming a "technocratic government" and a meeting between Abbas and Meshal.

"There is a Qatari initiative on the table to narrow Palestinian differences. We cannot discuss the details, but Hamas is committed to a national unity government," Izzat Mohammad Rishq, a high-level Hamas member, told Reuters.

Palestinian Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar said yesterday that the new proposal "does not violate national Palestinian principles," suggesting that Hamas is prepared to accept the Qatari initiative.

Zahar told the Palestinian news agency Ramtan that senior Syrian officials had also participated in discussions of the Qatari proposal.

"The decisions in Hamas are made in Damascus, not Gaza," Palestinian sources said.

The key obstacles to the formation of a government have been Hamas' refusal to participate in any administration that recognizes Israel and to renounce armed struggle against it.

The chair of Fatah's parliamentary faction, Azzam al-Ahmed, emphasized to Haaretz yesterday that Abbas is committed to the six-point document that was agreed upon with Qatar. "Abbas declared that a week ago, and he does not intend to change his position," Ahmed said. "We are waiting for an answer from Hamas."

After the Qatari minister's meeting with Meshal in Damascus, it was reported that Hamas would respond to the proposal in a few days.

Egyptian officials announced yesterday that Palestinian Interior Minister Saeed Seyam had arrived for a visit. Seyam left the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing and traveled to Cairo. Egyptian efforts to end the violent Palestinian standoff have not been successful, primarily because of Egypt's inability to pressure Hamas leaders residing in Damascus.

Former Palestinian minister Ghasan al-Hatib told Haaretz yesterday that Qatar is in a better position to mediate thanks to its good relations with Fatah and Hamas. "Hamas leaders come and go in Doha, and there are Hamas people who are there permanently. Qatar also has good relations with the heads of the PA," he said.

Fifteen people have been killed in clashes between Hamas and Fatah since talks on a coalition government foundered, the worst internal Palestinian violence in a decade.