Haneyya calls on Egypt to open Rafah crossing if Israel refuses calm

Ismail Haneyya, the premier of the PA caretaker government, reiterated Sunday that his government is ready to cooperate with all the initiatives to stop the Israeli aggression and to lift the siege on the Gaza Strip, calling on Egypt to open the Rafah border crossing if Israel refused the truce proposal, which Hamas approved.

In a televised speech on the 60th anniversary of the Nakba, Haneyya said if the Israeli occupation rejected the calm, then Egypt is invited to open the Rafah crossing and to break the siege because Egypt is not a broker, but an ally and supporter for the Palestinian people and their inalienable rights.

The premier underlined that many European envoys filed reports with the EU stating that the Rafah crossing met the required conditions and is ready to operate after they visited Gaza during the last two days and inspected the crossing.

The premier added that his government did not object to administering the crossing under the responsibility of the legitimate Palestinian authorities represented in the PA chief and the caretaker government in Gaza and in the presence of an unobstructing European role. 

Regarding the issue of the Israeli captive soldier, the premier affirmed that the Palestinian factions that hold the captive soldier expressed their readiness to release him within a prisoner swap deal if the Israeli government responded to the deal demands that call for the release of Palestinian prisoners in return.

The premier strongly castigated the US president”s speech at the Israeli parliament and regarded it as hostile to the Arab peoples and an intentional disregard of the suffering of the Palestinian people and the disasters they constantly live because of the American bias in favor of the Israeli occupation.

The premier stressed the need for providing an atmosphere that contributes to the restoration of national unity in Gaza and the West Bank and the establishment of national dialog and reconciliation that does not exclude any party.