Hamas: New Egypt gov't imposing pain on Gazans
Gaza's Interior Minister Fathi Hammad scolds Egyptian President Morsi over closure of Rafah crossing; demands Cairo reopens it immediately
The Islamist group Hamas, stunned by Egypt's closure of its border with Gaza, said on Monday the new Islamist leadership in Cairo was imposing the same pain on the Palestinians as ousted former president, Hosni Mubarak.
Egypt pulled the shutters down on the Rafah crossing a week ago after unidentified terrorists shot dead 16 Egyptian police near the Gaza border before launching an attack on neighboring Israel that was swiftly smothered.
Related stories:
- Egypt: Sinai terrorists used Hamas tunnels
-
US, Egypt negotiating Sinai security aid package
-
Israel: Morsi wants to prove he's in charge
"We suffered from the unjust regime of Mubarak that participated in the (Israeli) blockade of Gaza. Why should we suffer now in the era of Egypt's revolution and democracy?" said Hamas Interior Minister Fathi Hammad.
"The Egyptian leadership is requested to order the reopening of the Rafah crossing to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians wanting to travel, students, patients, residents in third countries and pilgrims," he added in a statement.
Egyptian President Morsi and Hamas PM Haniyeh (Photo: AP)
Israel has for years refused exit visas for all but a tiny minority in Gaza, making Rafah the sole window on the world for almost all of the enclave's 1.7 million Palestinians, with some 800 people a day using the terminal to reach Egypt.
Since the closure, thousands have been stranded, although Cairo did order a brief opening on Friday to allow Palestinians trapped in Egypt to return home.
Egypt said Monday that it would open the crossing temporarily yet again, but just for three days, mainly to permit travel for humanitarian cases such as Palestinians seeking medical care abroad, and students, a Hamas official said.
"If Palestine was not a top priority for you, you should change direction," Hammad said in an unusually sharp rebuke.
Hamas believed Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi would usher in a new period of harmony between Gaza and Cairo, but that has yet to materialize because of strategic considerations involving Egypt's 1979 peace treaty with Israel and related military aid from the United States.
Tunnel clashes
Immediately after the Sinai killings, Hamas ordered the closure of around 1,000 smuggling tunnels along its border with Egypt to prevent possible infiltration by attackers.
Several tunnels have remained operational bringing food, fuel and construction materials into Gaza, but Hamas has said it would be willing to see all the underground passages closed if Egypt agreed to defy Israel and let goods flow through Rafah.
Israel maintains a strict control of all imports into Gaza to prevent arms reaching Hamas, which refuses to recognize the Jewish state's right to exist. Mubarak, deeply suspicious of the Islamists, was happy to support the Gaza blockade.
Hamas' political foes have urged Egypt to destroy all the tunnels and starve the Islamist group of the multi-million dollar duties it imposes on smuggled produce.
"These tunnels, which solidified the division of Palestine in Gaza, have for some time been a threat to Egypt's national security and the unity of the Palestinian people," Tayeb Abdel-Rahim, a top aide to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, said.
"Illegal smuggling comes at the expense of the legitimate interests of our nation and its citizens," he added. His comments were denounced by Hamas, which called the tunnels a "lifeline" for Gaza's people.
- Receive Ynetnews updates
directly to your desktop
