CAIRO: The Rafah crossing will remain open today for the end of a three-day stint in which some 5,000 Palestinians overall will be expected to pass through in both directions, most of them students and patients being treated in Egypt. On Saturday 2,482 Palestinians passed through the crossing throughout the day, 456 coming in from Gaza with the rest returning from Egypt. A delegation from the International Movement to Open the Rafah Border has been at the crossing for 15 days and one of its members bemoaned the treatment of Palestinians at the hands of Egyptian border authorities. "The behavior of the Egyptian authorities was abominable, it was demeaning and degrading, Paki Weiland told Daily News Egypt Sunday. "They had people wait for hours in the sun, and then they were herded into the gates and it is a testimony to the Palestinian people that they didn't trample one another with all the heat and frustration. At one point they brought out some men in riot gear to keep the people back. "People have a right to cross their borders. They are putting people through unnecessary hoops, she added. Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh was present at the Gazan side when the gates opened and told reporters the continued closure of the crossing was an Arab mistake. "We still believe the closing of the crossing is a national and pan-Arab mistake, because the suffering of Gaza s residents is great and cannot be expressed in words, he said. "We can operate the crossing on the basis of political cooperation and Egyptian-Palestinian cooperation, with the presence of Europeans, Egypt, the Palestinian presidency, and the Palestinian government, he added. Reports in the Israeli press claim that Egypt is holding talks with Israel on a new comprehensive ceasefire agreement that would include reopening the crossings into Gaza, whether on the Egyptian or Israeli side. The agreement is predicated on an agreement being reached between the Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas. Egypt is currently mediating talks between the factions and has set a deadline of July 7 for an agreement to be concluded. "There are certain issues with seriousness that are still at the front, and I hope a deal is signed by July 7, Haniyeh said on the Egyptian-mediated talks to reach a truce between the two factions. The Israeli Embassy in Cairo told Daily News Egypt that it could not comment on reports of any talks because it did not possess any information about it. Reports have also been circulating that an agreement is close to being reached on a prisoner exchange involving captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, despite repeated denials by officials. The latest of these was by Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, who said Sunday, "The reports are incorrect and it s possible they are even causing damage.
