Egypt told Palestinian rivals that they have to reach a national power-sharing agreement no later than July 7, an official from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party said on Wednesday.

"Egypt informed Fatah and Hamas about the program of the upcoming rounds of talks that will end on July 7," said Azzam al-Ahmad, chief of Fatah delegation to the Cairo-hosted dialogue.

On that date, Fatah and its bitter rival, Hamas, will have to sign the inter-Palestinian reconciliation accord in Cairo, al-Ahmad told Xinhua.

Fatah has told the Egyptian mediators that it accepted the program and the schedule of the dialogue, while the Islamic Hamas has yet responded, according to al-Ahmad.

Rift has emerged since Hamas routed pro-Abbas forces and seized control of the Gaza Strip in June 2007. Egypt has hold five rounds of talks aimed at overcoming the increasingly feud as both sides consolidated their rule in the territories they took, Hamas in Gaza and Fatah in the West Bank.

Prior to July 7, specialized committees will continue meetings in Cairo to bridge remaining gaps, although Hamas and Fatah have not made any clear progress on the issues of forming a unity government, reforming security services and elections.

(Xinhua News Agency June 18, 2009)