MIDDLE EAST:Israel ordered the closure of the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza yesterday, apparently to prevent the Palestinian prime minister, Ismail Haniyeh, from returning home with millions of dollars in donated money.
More than 1,000 Hamas militants stormed the crossing after it was closed, firing into the air as travellers ducked for cover and sparking a gun battle with Palestinian security guards. Two bombs were detonated nearby to blow a hole through the concrete wall on the border.
Reports said Mr Haniyeh, who leads the Hamas government, was bringing suitcases containing about $35m (€26m) in donations from abroad, following an international financial boycott. Egyptian officials tried to negotiate to allow Mr Haniyeh to cross into Gaza without the money but EU monitors, who supervise the crossing, said Rafah had closed for the night. The crossing is supposed to open only in the presence of the monitors.
The incident came after another day of clashes between rival Palestinian factions in Gaza. A gun battle broke out when officers from the General Intelligence unit, a force allied to the Fatah faction of the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, arrested a member of another faction, the Popular Resistance Committees, in Gaza City. The arrested man, Hisham Mukhaimar, was wanted in connection with the killing of the three young sons of a Fatah intelligence officer in Gaza on Monday.
After the arrest the Popular Resistance Committees kidnapped a General Intelligence security officer in retaliation. On Wednesday a Hamas judge was killed in southern Gaza in another retaliatory attack.
In Ramallah, in the West Bank, Hamas cancelled a rally due to be held yesterday to mark the 19th anniversary of its founding. Fatah activists had blocked off the streets and large numbers of security officers loyal to Fatah were deployed in the area.
However, Hamas officials said another rally was planned for today and that Mr Haniyeh, who had cut short his trip abroad to handle the crisis, would address a large crowd in Gaza. That comes a day before Mr Abbas is to make a speech in which he is expected to threaten early elections in an effort to break the deadlock between the rival factions.
Since Hamas formed a government in March the Palestinian Authority has faced an international boycott. Israel is also withholding $60m (€45m) a month in tax revenues, which normally pays the salaries of 160,000 government employees. The international community and Israel say Hamas must recognise Israel, halt violence and sign up to past peace deals before the boycott is lifted.
Hamas has refused, and for the past month Mr Haniyeh has been touring the Muslim world trying to rally support. Iran, Qatar and Sudan together promised up to $350m (€264m), but transferring the money has proved difficult due to banking sanctions. In recent weeks Hamas ministers have brought in up to $80m in cash stuffed into suitcases when they cross the Rafah border. But Israel appears to want to stop Iranian funds, in particular, reaching Hamas.