Senior Hamas leader Mahmoud al-Zahar has said the Palestinian faction fears that Egypt might be in the process of reversing its earlier decision to permanently open the Rafah border crossing.
Speaking with Al-Masry Al-Youm, Zahar urged Egyptian authorities to honor their earlier promise to facilitate the movement of Palestinian travellers through the crossing.
Zahar said that the Palestinian side decided to close the crossing after Egypt shut its gates without prior agreement.
"The Egyptian officials closed the crossing, citing maintenance works, but the fact is that the crossing's gates are not in need of repair, which suggests a change in Egypt's position", Zahar added, pointing to "provocations on the ground."
As for the real factors causing Egypt to take the action, the Hamas leader said, "So far, we can't understand why. Is it a means of applying political pressure? Is it a security measure? Or a state policy? We are, however, aware that Egypt’s policies have become completely different from the past."
Zahar called for clarification over some issues, such as the number of Palestinian travellers allowed to pass through the crossing, the crossing's opening times, and travel ban lists.
He added that the crossing’s capacity should be upgraded so as to cope with the rising numbers of Palestinian travellers, especially with the approach of the season of Omra pilgrimage during the holy months of Ragab, Shaaban, and Ramadan.
Translated from the Arabic Edition
