Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah arrived in Gaza Monday for his first visit in two years, saying the Palestinian Authority would assume control of the Strip after a decade of factional strife.
Hamdallah crossed the border with dozens of ministers and officials from the West Bank-based PA into the Hamas-run coastal enclave at around noon.
“The government began to exercise its roles in Gaza from today,” Hamdallah said at a press conference at the crossing.
“We return to Gaza again to end the division and achieve unity.”
He was welcomed by thousands of Gazans, with hopes that this reconciliation plan can avoid the problems that wrecked several previous attempts.
Hamdallah’s entry was delayed by around half an hour because of disputes between PA and Hamas security men, a security source says.
Hamas politicians and members of the premier’s Fatah faction greeted Hamdallah on arrival. He is expected to meet Hamas’s overall leader Ismail Haniyeh and its Gaza chief Yahya Sinwar later Monday, and chair a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
The event is meant to be the first significant step in a transfer of powers.
— AFP
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