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PNA slams Hamas proposal to operate Rafah crossing with Egypt

Xinhua, January 12, 2016 Adjust font size:

The Palestinian unity government on Tuesday slammed a Hamas proposal to form a factional committee to supervise the operation of the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, saying Hamas is procrastinating the hand-over of the coastal enclave.

Hamas "apparently is not concerned at all about easing the suffering of the people in the Gaza Strip and insists on wasting time by postponement and creating excuses," the government said in a statement after its weekly meeting in both Gaza and the West Bank via the video conference system.

In 2007, Hamas violently seized control of the Gaza Strip following weeks of internal fighting with Abbas Fatah Party. Efforts to end this internal division between them had so far failed to achieve full reconciliation between them.

Two weeks ago, Palestinian left-wing factions and the Islamic Jihad drafted a proposal related to the re-opening of the Rafah crossing with Egypt permanently by handing over the crossing to the consensus government.

The factions presented their plan to both Hamas leadership and the Palestinian National Authority (PNA).

The PNA welcomed the initiative, but Hamas officials said they had to study it first before announcing their stance.

Later, Hamas met with the factions' representatives and proposed to form a factional committee comprising all the Palestinian groups, including Hamas and Fatah Party, to operate the terminal rather than handing it over to the consensus government.

Egypt has been temporarily opening the Rafah crossing on its border with the Gaza Strip only for pilgrims and humanitarian cases.

Egypt had repeatedly announced that it opposes to cooperate with Hamas, stressing readiness to only cooperate with the PNA and its consensus government. Endit