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A Palestinian man walking along the Gaza-Egypt border on Tuesday. (AP)
Last update - 23:32 29/01/2008
Abbas: Gaza border row shows Hamas disregard for Palestinian needs
By News Agencies
Tags: Palestinians, Mahmoud Abbas 

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Tuesday that by insisting on control of the Gaza Strip's border with Egypt, Hamas has shown that it is not concerned with the needs of the Palestinian people.

Abbas, who arrived Tuesday evening in Cairo for talks on the future of the border breached last week by Hamas militants, said said his faction was determined to have the crossing under its control and not Hamas'.

"The militant rivals, by refusing to give the border back showed that they don't want to serve the Palestinian people," he said.
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Abbas has received the support of Arab states, the European Union and the United States over his proposal to let his forces control the frontier, thus excluding the rival Hamas movement which has run the coastal territory since its takeover in June.

Jittery about the chaos on its border caused by the influx of Palestinians, Egypt has invited Abbas and Hamas delegates for talks aimed at ending the weeklong crisis.

Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have flooded into Egypt unchecked over the past seven days since Hamas militants blasted holes in the border partition.

But the flow of Palestinians slowed considerably Tuesday, after Egypt, working with Hamas security forces, sealed one of three breaches in the
border with a chain-link fence a day earlier.

Two large border breaches remained open and Egyptian border guards began repairing one of those Tuesday.

The Egyptians also deployed several dozen riot police armed with shields and batons at the two remaining openings, suggesting that the cross-border free-for-all may soon come to an end. Other riot police blocked Rafah's main road and told Palestinian cars to head back to Gaza.

But it was unclear when Egypt planned to completely fix the wall, and cars and trucks continued travel freely between the divided city Tuesday.

Egypt wants to restore shared control of the border among the Palestinian
Authority, Israel, and European Union monitors, but the militant Hamas ousted the Palestinian Authority from the border after violently seizing Gaza in June.

Since then and until the border breach, Israel and Egypt had kept Gaza
largely sealed.

Abbas has expressed readiness to take on the responsibility of all crossing points in Gaza to solve the crisis, but Hamas has insisted it must have a role and that old arrangements are no longer valid.

That has caused rising tension between Hamas and Egypt, and little hopes for a breakthrough during key meetings Wednesday.

An Egyptian foreign ministry spokesman reiterated Cairo's stance on Tuesday, saying: "The Egyptian view is that the Rafah crossing should be back to operation in a way that will allow the Palestinian Authority representatives and the EU observers to administer it."

Hamas urges Gazans to cooperate with security forces

In Gazan Rafah, about 50 Hamas lawmakers and intellectuals staged a rally
Tuesday to thank Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak for allowing the
Palestinians to cross the border.

But deputy Parliament Speaker Ahmed Bahar also urged Egypt to allow Gazans to travel outside of Egypt and asked Palestinians to work with Egyptian security officials.

"We call on our people to cooperate with Egyptian security, whose work we
appreciate, and to exhibit discipline and to respond to their orders in order to organize the exit and entry along the border," Bahar said.

By nightfall Tuesday, three Gazans who had made it as far as Kafr el-Sheik province, some 180 kilometers (112 miles) north of Cairo, were arrested and taken back to Rafah, a security official said. T

The Gazans carried no ID papers, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media.

The arrestes may trigger concerns in Cairo that Gazans could slip deeper into Egypt if the Rafah breaches remain open.

Officials: Israel won't block Abbas control of border

Earlier Tuesday, Israeli officials said that Israel does not plan to block Abbas from assuming control of Gaza's border crossing with Egypt if he reaches an agreement to do so with Cairo.

Abbas has won international backing for taking control of Gaza's border crossing with Egypt at Rafah, though it is unclear how he and his forces would do so given Hamas' control of Gaza.

"If all of them want it, we will not be the ones that will undermine it. So it will happen," an official familiar with the deliberations said. "Given that we see Abbas as the legitimate force and we don't want to weaken him, we have no reason to prevent it."

But the official stressed that Israel has not agreed to giving Abbas control over Gaza's border crossings with Israel, citing security concerns. Abbas has proposed taking over all of the crossings.

"Rafah doesn't cross into Israel. Crossing into Israel, that is a different issue altogether," the official said.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Monday signaled American support for Abbas' forces taking charge of the border, saying it might help bring "some order" to the Rafah border crossing.

"There would be many details that would have to be worked out and I can't comment on any specific detail because this is obviously a very complex - would be a very complex operation in itself," Rice told reporters when asked whether Washington supported Abbas' forces taking charge of the border.

"But we have said that in concept it should be supported and that the parties should look to see if that might be one way to handle the situation," she said at a news conference after meeting Australia's foreign minister.

Egypt said Monday it wanted Palestinian Authority forces under Abbas to control its border crossing with Gaza, while Arab foreign ministers meeting in an emergency session in Cairo on Sunday welcomed Abbas' proposal to take control of the border.

The European Union said it would consider returning monitors to the crossing.

Hamas, however, has reacted angrily to the proposal, calling it an "Israeli-led international conspiracy with the participation of some regional parties."

"We tell all parties that we will not allow the return of old conditions at the crossing," said Hamas spokesman Sami Abu-Zuhri.

Both Abbas and Hamas political leader Khaled Meshal are expected in Cairo this week to discuss the issue with Egyptian officials.

Related articles:
  • Egyptians near Gaza grow tired of influx from neighboring
    Palestinian area
  • Abbas wins int'l backing for PA control at Egypt-Gaza border
  • Officials: Israel won't let Gaza border breach threaten security
  • Hamas takes control at frontier as 200000 Gazans enter Egypt
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      1.   Nice of Israel 11:14  |  Clickfool 29/01/08
      2.   What is Israel`s Authority? 11:24  |  Mark of Lewiston 29/01/08
      3.   Israel doesn`t nix this time.... 11:25  |  Esther 29/01/08
      4.   There are two advantages for Israel in doing this 12:27  |  Natallie Durson 29/01/08
      5.   Ms. Rice says its too complex..but..... 12:27  |  Stephen. 29/01/08
      6.   Philisteen border with Egypt 12:36  |  A Nilsson UNOfficer 29/01/08
      7.   The lesser of two evils? 12:50  |  sh 29/01/08
      8.   #2 Exactly so, Mark of Lewiston 13:18  |  Johnboy 29/01/08
      9.   Israel should leave Gaza alone 13:33  |  Marilyn 29/01/08
      10.   indrajaya,"Nothing is eternal on the face of the EARTH. Only God, 13:34  |  akiva (zionist) 29/01/08
      11.   # 4 Durson...maybe, just maybe, 13:35  |  Lynn 29/01/08
      12.   response Marling about Gaza 13:52  |  A Nilsson UNOfficer 29/01/08
      13.   Israel must recognize Hamas 14:28  |  Yonatan 29/01/08
      14.   The Israeli Senior Official is an Wacko appeaser 14:38  |  Joseph . E 29/01/08
      15.   Crossing 14:41  |  Jim 29/01/08
      16.   The Wacko Israeli Official tells us that defending our country 15:04  |  Joseph . E 29/01/08
      17.   #2 Mark of Lewiston on border crossings 15:11  |  Lynn 29/01/08
      18.   Johnboy # 8 No Contradiction (part 1) 15:26  |  Jeff Northridge 29/01/08
      19.   "Jim" of South Brunswick 15:36  |  Nik Miller 29/01/08
      20.   "Jim" of South Brunswick 15:36  |  Nik Miller 29/01/08
      21.   Some accommodation with Hamas will be needed 15:37  |  Tosefta 29/01/08
      22.   Johnboy # 8 No Contradiction (part 2) 15:55  |  Jeff Northridge 29/01/08
      23.   Senile Tosefta:Hamas had unity Gov with Abbas and Qassams hit Sd 15:58  |  Absolute Sweden 29/01/08
      24.   II. His Honor, the Legal Inept: Reading incomprehension 16:33  |  Tosefta 29/01/08
      25.   III. His Honor, the Legal Inept: Gaza upside-down (re Jeff N #18) 16:35  |  Tosefta 29/01/08
      26.   Absolute Swedish rubbish #23 16:42  |  Tosefta 29/01/08
      27.   Tosefta # 17 Accommodating Hamas 16:48  |  Jeff Northridge 29/01/08
      28.   Akiva Tosefta :Look up in the dictionary "if pigs could fly" 17:04  |  Absolute Sweden 29/01/08
      29.   Take the cure (Jeff Northridge #27) 17:06  |  Tosefta 29/01/08
      30.   Tosefta # 25 John Dugard`s Mistake 17:32  |  Jeff Northridge 29/01/08
      31.   IV. His Honor, the Legal Inept: Gaza released from Occupation 17:41  |  Tosefta (re Jeff#30) 29/01/08
      32.   # 26 Tosefta....no, I don`t think it will make 18:06  |  Lynn 29/01/08
      33.   TO NO 13.MARILYN [THE PROFFESOR. SOMEWHAT]. 18:09  |  DANNY. 29/01/08
      34.   Jeff Northridge - Re: GCIV 18:15  |  17 29/01/08
      35.   @24 Toosofta and definitions gone awry 18:23  |  v hardman 29/01/08
      36.   Palestinian `Democratic` State -you must be ignorant 18:24  |  not ignorant 29/01/08
      37.   Palestinian `Democratic` State -you must be ignorant 18:24  |  not ignorant 29/01/08
      38.   Realism, humanism or politics. 18:27  |  Harold Lane 29/01/08
      39.   The dream of Juden/Arab Rat. 18:29  |  Hossein 29/01/08
      40.   I just reread my comment in no. 4 and realize I`ve been a fool 18:50  |  Natallie Durson 29/01/08
      41.   News not as bad as you think (Lynn #32) 18:54  |  Tosefta 29/01/08
      42.   Join the blockheaded crowd (V Hardhead #35) 19:09  |  Tosefta 29/01/08
      43.   re 40 19:48  |  mark 29/01/08
      44.   Mark, I am afraid so. 20:03  |  Natallie Durson 29/01/08
      45.   At least someone is trying to solve the problem 20:13  |  Mark Lincoln 29/01/08
      46.   Very Good Idea 20:19  |  Danite 29/01/08
      47.   To Mark of Lewistown 20:20  |  Avi 29/01/08
      48.   Is Gaza occupied territory? 20:27  |  Yonatan 29/01/08
      49.   Mark Of Lewiston 20:36  |  Danite 29/01/08
      50.   8 Johnboy - Cannot be Both 20:42  |  Mark of Lewiston 29/01/08
      51.   17 Lynn - Agreed 20:48  |  Mark of Lewiston 29/01/08
      52.   In other words 20:49  |  Baz Mann 29/01/08
      53.   What this is really about 20:50  |  Avi 29/01/08
      54.   re 44 20:54  |  mark 29/01/08
      55.   Bordering on trouble 21:00  |  Morris Valentine 29/01/08
      56.   45 Danite - I get the Practical 21:16  |  Mark of Lewiston 29/01/08
      57.   Hamas equals Al Queda in Palestine 21:21  |  Voice of Reason 29/01/08
      58.   Tosefta 21:30  |  Alan 29/01/08
      59.   Israel should give up Jerusalem 21:40  |  mark 29/01/08
      60.   Alan, I did not say that Gaza was no longer occupied. I tend to b 21:42  |  Tosefta 29/01/08
      61.   #40/44 Fake Natallie Durson 21:47  |  Labhras 29/01/08
      62.   45- Danite - "Self-defense" 21:51  |  The Az man 29/01/08
      63.   53- Voice of Reason 21:58  |  The Az man 29/01/08
      64.   Well spotted Labhras 22:01  |  mark 29/01/08
      65.   Israel should allow for the right of return 22:02  |  Danite 29/01/08
      66.   Hamas should be given full control over the Rafah crossing 22:03  |  Danite 29/01/08
      67.   Killing children is self defense 22:05  |  Danite 29/01/08
      68.   Fayad and his junta are not legit 22:14  |  Salameh