Palestinians rally for unity in Gaza, West Bank

Tens of thousands of Palestinians have held rallies in Gaza City and Ramallah, West Bank, calling for unity and cooperation between Hamas and Fatah.

Hamas controls Gaza, while Fatah rules the West Bank. Hamas removed Fatah from Gaza in 2007.

There are tens of thousands of people already there, and there may be more on the way, a rally organizer Ihab al-Ghussein, told Al Jazeera.

As with many other demonstrations across the Middle East, Facebook played a large role in organizing these rallies.

Thousands of people also marched in the West Bank cities of Nablus, Bethlehem and Hebron.

Protesters reportedly held up placards which read, “The people want an end to division.”

According to reports, Hamas has tried to hijack the demonstration in Gaza for political purposes.

While Hamas has supported calls for unity with Fatah, deep divisions remain between the rival governments.

The protesters want Mahmoud Abbas' Palestinian Authority and Hamas to reconcile their differences
Previous efforts to mediate a truce between Fatah and Hamas – which included interventions by Saudi Arabia and Egypt -- have failed.

The Palestinian Maan news agency reported that Hamas police had detained six protesters; while another dozen protesters have been detained in Gaza City since Sunday.

The protesters were later released after signing a pledge that they would not participate in rallies in the future without police permission, Maan reported.