Hamas delegation heads to Cairo to discuss worsening situation in Gaza

GAZA, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- A delegation of the Islamic Hamas movement headed to Cairo on Friday for a meeting with Egyptian officials to discuss the worsening situation in the Gaza Strip.

The delegation, led by its leader Ismail Haniyeh and includes five other high-ranking officials, aims to work with Egypt to ease the worsening humanitarian situation in the Israeli-blockaded enclave, Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said in a statement.

The two sides will discuss the economic crisis that has "put Gaza on the edge of the abyss," Barhoum said.

They will also discuss obstacles to a unity deal with the Palestinian government in the West Bank, as the visit is within the framework of the Hamas-Fatah reconciliation agreements signed in 2011 and 2017, he added.

Egypt is the primary sponsor of an ongoing reconciliation process between Hamas, which controls Gaza Strip, and Fatah, a Palestinian faction that rules the West Bank.

Last October, Hamas signed a new reconciliation agreement with Fatah in Cairo, but the recommendations from the agreement have yet to be implemented. Enditem