GAZA (PIC)– The PA caretaker government and the Hamas Movement on Tuesday categorically refused to transfer traffic of Palestinians in and out of the Gaza Strip from the Rafah crossing to the Kerem Shalom terminal.
The PA government in a press release said that any such step would “Seriously infringe” on the Palestinian people’s rights and would endanger returning citizens to the danger of arrest at the hands of Israeli occupation forces.
For its part the Hamas Movement said that the opening of Kerem Shalom instead of the Rafah terminal would serve as a “stab in the back” of the Palestinian people.
Hamas said that it would not allow the Israeli occupation to control anew the movement of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip emphasizing that Rafah is the sole gateway for the Palestinians in Gaza and would remain so.
It appealed to the Red Cross to maintain its neutrality and to exert its efforts to ensure the entry of Palestinian citizens via Rafah and not Kerem Shalom crossing. It also asked Egypt not to accept the Israeli step.
