A government delegation led by Nadhmi Mehanna is expected to arrive in Gaza in the next few hours after Hamas agreed to hand over control of the border crossings to the consensus government.
Head of the General Commission of Civil Affairs Hussein al-Sheikh said the government will take over the crossings file in the next 24 hours as part of the first steps made by Fatah and Hamas to implement the terms of the reconciliation deal struck in Cairo on Thursday.
Al-Sheikh said the real challenge faced by all parties lies in enabling the government to fully take up its mission in Gaza without hindrances in anticipation of a projected meeting between the national factions on November 21.
Al-Sheikh also said a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Rami al-Hamdallah is slated to be held in the next few hours so as to restructure the security institutions in cooperation with concerned authorities in Gaza and set a date for a visit by West Bank security officials to Gaza as stipulated by the reconciliation deal.
Last Thursday Fatah and Hamas signed a reconciliation agreement in Cairo. Key to the deal is the rehabilitation of the government mission in Gaza and taking control of Gaza crossings by November 1 2017.
