GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Fatah official Faisal Abu Shahal said Saturday that reconvening the Palestinian Legislative Council before Palestinian elections would delay political reconciliation.

The speaker of the defunct Palestinian parliament, Aziz Dweik, said Friday that the legislative body should resume work before any new national election.

The Palestinian Legislative Council has not sat since Hamas and Fatah violently split Palestine into separate governments in 2007.

Abu Shahal said in a statement that while the PLC is important, a transitional government should be implemented first.

"Lets implement what's already been agreed on -- there is no need for new discussions," he said.

The long-embattled reconciliation deal, signed in 2011, once again ground to a halt until a renewed push earlier this month.