Gaza City: Gaza’s Hamas rulers say they have reached an agreement through international mediators to end the latest round of cross-border violence with Israel.
Under the deal, Hamas is to halt the launches of explosives-laden balloons and rocket fire into Israel, while Israel said it would ease a blockade that has been tightened in recent weeks. The Israeli restrictions have worsened living conditions in Gaza at a time when it is coping with a new coronavirus outbreak.
As a result of indirect mediation efforts led by Egypt, the United Nations and Qatar, Hamas said “several projects will be announced to serve our people in Gaza Strip and contribute in mitigating” difficult living conditions.
Its statement didn’t detail any of the projects but it said conditions would return to “what they were before the escalation.”
Under previous, unofficial understandings reached through intermediaries, Hamas has sought a broader easing of restrictions on movement, increased power supplies from Israel and large-scale economic projects to help lower unemployment hovering around 50 per cent. It accuses Israel of moving too slowly or not honouring its commitments.
COGAT, an Israeli defence body responsible for Palestinian civilian affairs, announced late on Monday that it would immediately reopen Gaza’s only cargo crossing and resume fuel shipments into the territory. It also said it would reopen a 25-kilometre fishing zone off Gaza’s coast.
Read the article by Fares Akram in The Sydney Morning Herald.