Dozens of stranded Hamas members return to Gaza Strip through Rafah crossing terminal

Date: 30 / 09 / 2007 Time: 10:07

Bethlehem – Ma'an –

Dozens of Hamas activists, who were stranded on the Egyptian side of the Rafah Crossing, between Egypt and Gaza Strip, returned to the Gaza Strip on Saturday, following an agreement between the two sides.

Reuters quoted Hamas as saying that 850 activists returned to the strip during Saturday night through Rafah Crossing, which has been closed since Hamas established control in Gaza over three months ago.

The Hamas members had refused to return to the Gaza Strip through alternative crossings controlled by the Israeli occupation government due to fear of arrest.

Among the stranded Hamas members were high-profile leaders of the movement.

Tens of stranded Palestinians return to Gaza via Rafah terminal

[ 30/09/2007 - 08:04 AM ]

RAFAH, (PIC)--

Dozens of Palestinian citizens stranded at the Rafah crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip managed at dawn Sunday to return to the Strip after an understanding to open the terminal to let them through was reached between Egypt and the Hamas Movement.

Local sources told PIC that the agreement allowed the return of those citizens who have been trapped at the crossing for several months.

They said that among the returnees were the prominent Hamas MPs Mushir Al-Masri and Faraj Al-Ghoul along with others.

Scores of Palestinians have refused to return to Gaza through the Israeli-controlled Oja crossing, which they described as a "trap" to arrest them.

The Hamas Movement refused PA chief Mahmoud Abbas's agreement with the Israeli occupation government that allowed the return of stranded Palestinians through Oja then through Erez in northern Gaza, saying that it was aimed at tightening the siege of the Palestinian people in Gaza.

The sources said that the return of the remaining Palestinians through Rafah terminal affirmed the importance of steadfastness and pointed to an Arab rejection of besieging the Palestinian people, hoping that the crossing would open under Egyptian-Palestinian administration without any foreign intervention.

Fair Use Notice

This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.