The Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement [Hamas] praised relations with Egypt, according to its spokesperson Hazem Kassem. “Relations between Hamas and Egypt witnessed a positive shift, particularly since the last negotiations which took place in Cairo,” Kassem posted Saturday to his Facebook.
Kassem added that Egypt and Palestine have mutual interest in enhancing such relations and cooperating in borders security, stating that authorities in Gaza are implementing procedures aimed at reinforcing security on the borders, as “Egypt’s national security is part of Palestine’s security.”
Hamas spokesperson said he hoped to further develop relations with Egypt calling for the opening of the Rafah birder crossing to facilitate the movement of people and cargo.
Egypt recently allowed the crossing of vehicles loaded with fuel to the Gaza strip for operating the electricity station and resolving power cut crisis, Egyptian local media stated.
The Palestinian Ministry of Interior in Gaza strip controlled by Hamas said 22 fuel trucks crossed into Gaza on Friday.
On Wednesday, the ministry said it started constructing a buffering zone alongside the borderline with Egypt, and that the zone would extend to 100 meters inside Palestinian territory.
On its official website, the ministry quoted Deputy Interior Minister Tawfiq Abu Naim stating that the borderline space would become a closed military zone of which the first phase would extend to 12 kilometers long. He added that a monitoring system was also being implemented.
A delegation of Hamas leaders was in Egypt June to hold discussions with senior officials.
Relations between Egypt and Hamas have been suffering after the ouster of the former Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, and Egyptian media accused Hamas of supporting the Muslim Brotherhood, and operating terror operations in Egypt.
