CAIRO: An Egyptian request to Israel to reopen crossings into the Gaza Strip was agreed to as Egypt invited Hamas to Cairo in an attempt to keep hold onto a tenuous truce it had arbitrated between the group and Israel.
The crossings had been shutdown Tuesday after a Palestinian rocket attack.
The tahdiyeh (Arabic for period of calm) Egypt managed to negotiate between the two sides – spearheaded by intelligence chief Omar Suleiman – is in danger of coming to an end dying. Rockets continue to be launched on the Israeli city of Sderot as Israel recommences attacks against Hamas.
Suleiman has stepped in to keep the truce going as the final stage would lead to the opening of the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt as well as the release of captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.
Suleiman also hosted a Hamas delegation in Cairo Tuesday to keep the truce on course for it to reach its final stages. The “lull in reciprocated attacks was agreed upon by both sides and began June 19. Since then Israel has closed the crossings into Gaza five times and 12 rockets have been fired into Sderot.
Additionally, Egypt remains on course to host a Palestinian unity conference in the upcoming weeks according to the ambassador in Cairo Nabil Amr. The aim of the conference is to try and end the impasse between Hamas and Fatah as well as other Palestinian factions.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is willing to attempt to reach a truce with Hamas because it is understood a unified Palestinian stance is needed to make headway in the peace negotiations with Israel.
Hamas has also welcomed the idea as it seeks to bring an end to its besiegement in Gaza.
Further to this boxing in, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak signed an order declaring 36 charities or organizations are to be banned in Israel because Israel considers them “part of Hamas’ fundraising network, an Israeli statement read.
The charities are under the umbrella of an organization called the “Union of Good run by Egyptian cleric Yousef Al-Qaradawi and include “Interpal in the UK, branches of the Al-Aqsa Foundation in Europe, the Holy Land Foundation in the US, the World Assembly of Muslim Youth in Saudi Arabia, and additional foundations in Turkey, Qatar, South Africa, Austria, Jordan, France, the Netherlands, Italy, Denmark, Sweden and other countries.
“Recently, it has become clear that Union-affiliated foundations are trying to raise funds not only for Hamas charitable associations in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip, but for the activities of the Hamas government as well, the statement read.
Al-Qaradawi is a respected and revered scholar in Egypt and the Arab world, and is the driving force behind the popular Islamonline website, but is considered an advocate of militant Islam and a supporter of “terrorism by Israel and the UK.
