Officials of Hamas, Palestinian political groups meet in their bid to reopen Rafah crossing

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Friday 15 Jan 2016 - 13:39 Makkah mean time-5-4-1437 Gaza Strip, (IINA) - Officials of Hamas and a committee of Palestinian political factions held a meeting recently in regard to ongoing efforts toward reopening the Rafah crossing with Egypt, Ma’an News Agency reported. Talal Abu Tharifah, politburo member of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), told Ma'an that a recently-proposed initiative to end the closure was examined and that all parties agreed to meet again on the matter. Abu Tharifah said that the Palestinian Authority had formed the committee of Palestinian factions, which urged Hamas to agree to the initiative, saying that "time is not on the Palestinians’ side”. The Rafah crossing on the besieged enclave's southern border with Egypt was sealed indefinitely by Egyptian authorities when violence erupted after Mohammad Morsi was thrown from power in the summer of 2013. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the crossing has opened for around 40 days since October 2014. The closure has devastated more than 1.8 million Palestinian residents in Gaza, for whom the passage served a lifeline amid Israel’s nine-year military blockade of the strip. The unity government must take full control of the crossing, Abu Tharifah noted, adding that the initiative requires a highly qualified team to oversee the administrative side of the crossing. He also stressed that the Presidential guards have to take responsibility for security on the crossing. The initiative also proposes that monetary returns from the crossing go towards improving its facilities and support development projects in Gaza Strip. Sami Abu Zuhri, a spokesman for the Hamas movement, said that Hamas welcomed the factions, adding that the government was living up to their responsibilities in Gaza. He also noted that the meeting was "serious and candid”. AG/IINA