UN envoy to Mideast: 'Gaza has not been forgotten'
After clashes erupted yet again over weekend on border fence, Nikolay Mladenov tweets, 'Israel, Hamas need to prevent further deterioration, loss of life.'
"Gaza has not been forgotten! The suffering of its people is part of all UN discussions on Palestine with all Gulf States, European Union, and the non-aligned countries and many, many others. All share our concerns about the escalation and humanitarian situation and are looking for ways to help...," Mladenov tweeted.
"Thank you to all partners who support UN and Egypt's efforts to prevent war and help the people. I am deeply saddened by reports of the seven Palestinians killed by Israeli fire in Gaza yesterday. Israel, Hamas and all actors need to act and prevent further deterioration and loss of life," the UN envoy posted on his Twitter page.
Earlier, a delegation of senior Hamas officials from Gaza and abroad left the strip for a round of talks with Egyptian intelligence in Cairo to salvage the reconciliation talks between the terror organization and Fatah as well as the efforts to reach a long-term ceasefire agreement with Israel.
The delegation that was headed by deputy Hamas Khalil al-Hayya left the strip via the Rafah Crossing.
On Friday, violence erupted yet again on the Gaza border fence, with Some 20,000 demonstrators rioting at several locations near the response to calls by Hamas to continue the "March of Return" protests.
According to the Palestinian health ministry seven people, including three teenagers, aged 12, 14 and 18, were killed and at least 90 wounded by IDF fire during the clashes.
The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said in a statement that in response to "grenades and explosive devices" hurled at troops during the protests, an IAF aircraft carried out two airstrikes on Hamas posts in the strip, and that the number of demonstrators was the highest since the renewal of the skirmishes on the border fence in the beginning of the month.
The rioters sabotaged security infrastructures, attempted to breach the border fence at several locations and hurled more than 100 improvised explosive devices and grenade at IDF soldiers, the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit reported.
No Israeli casualties were reported.
On Sunday, the IDF began neutralizing the grenades and explosive device hurled by the Palestinians.
During the past few days, an escalation has been noted in the Hamas-Fatah relations.
After Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had halted the Egypt-mediated reconciliation talks between Hamas ant Fatah, the terror organization labeled on Thursday Abbas's speech at the UN General Assembly as a “declaration of failure," and blamed the woes of Palestinians on the 82-year-old's political mistakes.
The terror group, in an official statement, emphasized the speech is an admission of defeat regarding the intra-Palestinian reconciliation efforts, which have crumbled since being singed in December last year.
"The speech is a declaration of the failure of his policies and recognition of the end of reconciliation talks,” stressed the statement.
“The situation the Palestinian people currently find themselves in is a result of mistakes that Abbas has made despite the warnings of the Palestinian factions," the statement concluded.
