Egypt: Hamas, Fatah should control Gaza border together

[bemildred]

Cairo wants Hamas and Fatah to jointly operate the border crossing between Gaza and Egypt, a spokesman for Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said yesterday.

Meanwhile, the border was closed yesterday by mutual agreement of Egypt and Hamas, 12 days after the Islamic organization blew up the wall that sealed it. Speaking after a meeting between Mubarak and European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana, presidential spokesman Suleiman Awad said that Egypt would not allow the border to reopen. "Egypt is a respectable country," he said. "You can't break open its borders and throw stones at its soldiers."

What Egypt would prefer, he said, is for the Rafah crossing to reopen under the same arrangements that were in place before Hamas took over Gaza last June - namely, under Palestinian control alongside EU monitors. The monitors left after the Hamas takeover, causing the crossing to be shut. Now, said Awad, "the ball is in the Europeans' court."

Solana said that the EU monitors would return if all parties concerned agreed, and added that the EU was working to achieve such an agreement.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/950738.html

[Fredda Weinberg]

1. And another suicide bombing today ... this time Israel, last time Egypt

Let the EU deal w/it.

[bemildred]

3. And one in Sri Lanka, and one in Pakistan, and one in Iraq. nt

[azurnoir]

2. This has some promise

if all parties can behave themselves and take action against those that do not, like today's suicide bombers, it makes sense.

[Vegasaurus]

4. "If all parties can behave themselves"

This is hilarious!