May 31, 2011

Hamas urges Palestinians not to jeopardize Egypt’s opening of Rafah crossing

Ismail Haniyeh says Gazans must respect Egypt's security so Rafah crossing will remain open and enable Palestinians to travel after a four-year blockade.

By Haaretz Service

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Map of Gaza Strip, Stand December 2008

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh urged Gazans on Tuesday to refrain from breaching Egypt’s security in order to maintain the Rafah border crossing open, French news agency AFP reported.

“Don’t do anything that could compromise the reopening of the terminal,” AFP quoted Hanieyh as saying. “We assure our Egyptian brothers: ‘Your security is ours and your stability is ours.’”

On Saturday, Egypt permanently opened the Gaza Strip’s main gateway to the outside world after four years of an Egyptian blockade of Gaza that has prevented the vast majority of Gaza’s 1.5 million people from being able to travel abroad.

Read more at Haaretz.com.