Fatah–Hamas reconciliation process December 2012, in the aftermath of the UN status upgrade of the State of Palestine and the conflict in Gaza, calls for a unified Palestinian front have increased and the political leaders of Hamas and Fatah took several steps to reconcile their differences. In a televised address, PA President Mahmoud Abbas stressed that talks with Hamas would immediately follow the Palestinians' bid to upgrade their status at the UN General Assembly—an effort that succeeded. On 13 December, Fatah allowed Hamas to hold its first rally in the West bank since 2007, and on 4 January 2013, Hamas reciprocated by allowing
Free Palestine Movement Gaza Strip in 2010/11. After the Syrian Civil War's start, the Free Palestine Movement began to recruit for pro-government militias and founded its own paramilitary wing, the "Al-Aqsa Shield Forces" in 2012. The Al-Aqsa Shield Forces mostly operate in Damascus, especially after an informal power-sharing agreement between the Free Palestine Movement and Fatah al-Intifada, another pro-government militia, in 2016. According to this agreement Yasser Qashlaq paid Fatah al-Intifada a substantial sum for handing over parts of their frontline at the Yarmouk Camp to the Free Palestine Movement. In consequence, Yasser and his movement could gain "valuable political capital" as defenders