Israel does not plan to block Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas from assuming control of Gaza's border crossing with Egypt if he reaches an agreement to do so with Cairo, Israeli officials said yesterday.
Abbas has won US, European and Arab backing for taking control of Gaza's border crossing with Egypt at Rafah, though it is unclear how he and his forces would do so given Hamas' control of Gaza.
The Rafah border crossing with Egypt has largely been closed since June after Hamas seized control of the territory and the EU pulled its monitors out of the Gaza Strip. The EU said on Monday it would consider returning them to the crossing.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit endorsed Abbas' proposal to deploy his own, Western-trained forces at the crossing along with the EU monitors, though the presence of neither force was imminent, given Hamas's command on the ground.
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu-Zuhri reacted angrily to Cairo's endorsement of Abbas's proposal, calling it an "Israeli-led international conspiracy with the participation of some regional parties," which would exclude them from controlling the border.
"We tell all parties that we will not allow the return of old conditions at the crossing," Abu-Zuhri said.
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians poured into Egypt after Hamas militants blew up the border wall to allow the territory's 1.5 million people to stock up on food in short supply due to a blockade, which Israel said was tightened in response to cross border rocket attacks.
Hamas fighters cooperated with Egyptian forces on Monday to patch up the frontier barrier.
Gaza's border crossings have become the main battleground in a larger factional power struggle pitting Hamas against Abbas, whose authority has been limited to the Israeli-occupied West Bank, home to 2.5 million Palestinians.
"Of course they should give the border to Abbas. But where is he?" asked 28-year-old school teacher Ahmed Zaqtan as he returned to Gaza from the Egyptian side on Monday.
Before Hamas's takeover, EU monitors had been posted at Rafah under a deal with Egypt and Israel in 2005 that aimed to allay the Jewish state's concerns about arms and fighters coming into Gaza when it pulled out its own troops and settlers.
In a statement on Monday, EU foreign ministers said the bloc was "ready to consider resuming its monitoring mission in Rafah" under that deal -- provided Abbas, Egypt and Israel all approve.
At Rafah, traffic was back down to a trickle, partly due to Egypt's efforts to stem the flow of goods to the border area.
Egyptian and Hamas forces used concrete and fencing to close two gaps. Two other breaches in the frontier remain open, an entry and an exit, under joint Hamas and Egyptian guard.
A Hamas source said those openings could be closed today provided talks in Cairo with Egyptian officials "prove positive" for Hamas by giving it a say on the border in future.
Salam Fayyad, prime minister of Abbas' West Bank-based government, countered that there was "no need for new arrangements" and cautioned Hamas against "interfering in a way that could obstruct the reopening of the border crossings".
Both Hamas leaders and Abbas are expected in Cairo today. Egypt does not want to be seen as aiding the Israeli blockade.
Israel's Foreign Ministry held preliminary talks over the weekend with members of the EU mission. While Israeli officials were considering Abbas's proposal for taking over the crossings, including Rafah, they doubted his forces were strong enough.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice offered support on Monday Abbas to deploy some kind of security presence along the Gaza Strip's chaotic border with Egypt.
"We do support ... the concept of a Palestinian Authority presence to begin to introduce some order to that border," Rice told reporters.
"There would be many details that would have to be worked out, and I can't comment on any specific detail because this is obviously a very complex ... would be a very complex operation in itself," she said.
"But we've said that in concept it should be supported and that parties should look to see if that might be one way to handle the situation," she added during a press conference with Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith.
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