Internal disagreements within the Palestinian Authority (PA) is delaying the settlement on the managements of land crossings between Egypt and Hamas-run Gaza Strip, says a Palestinian official in Gaza.
Maher Abu Sabha, director general for crossings and borders at Hamas’s interior ministry in Gaza, has said that contact with Egypt concerning the crossings has been almost nonexistent recently. He told reporters in Gaza on Tuesday that there were severe disagreements within the Ramallah-based, Fatah-led PA that hinder the national unity government from assuming responsibility for the crossings. He did not, however, elaborate on the nature of those differences.
Abu Sabha added that resolving the crossings crisis requires a political resolution from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Hamas, since taking over in Gaza in 2007, has frequently urged Egypt to permanently open crossings and allow Palestinian travelers into Egypt. The faction has sometimes accused the Egyptian government of imposing a blockade on the enclave.
Egyptian authorities, meanwhile, do open the crossings occasionally for specific, predeclared periods.
Hamas and Fatah agreed in 2014 to assign the administration of Gaza to a national unity government Palestinian factions had agreed to form in a bid to end domestic division among them.
Edited translation from Anadolu
