Former head of the Palestinian government and leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniya asked Palestinians to support and respect Egyptian sovereignty and security. He said that Palestinians will not allow anyone to interfere with Egyptian security and influence Egypt's decision to open the Rafah crossing permanently to the besieged Palestinians in Gaza. Palestinian news agency Quds Press, 48 Arabs website and the Jerusalem Post quoted Haniya's comments, which emphasized the need to maintain security and stability in Egypt while creating a memorial to the Turkish activists who were killed by the Israeli army last year. "We assure our brothers in Egypt that your security is our security, and that we will work together to end the siege, liberate the land and restore Palestinian rights that have been stolen by Israel," said Haniya. Haniya said the Egyptian people never participated in blockading Gaza, and that it was the former Egyptian government that did. He added that Egypt's decision to open the Rafah crossing confirms the sovereignty and ownership of the crossing, and illustrates the free will of Egypt, especially when they refused to accept Israeli orders to shut the crossing. Haniya's comments came in response to the accusations made by Israel on Monday when they claimed the opening of the Rafah crossing is a breach of the peace treaty between Egypt and Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu alleged that Hamas and other terrorist groups are an increasingly active force in Egypt. He said that Hamas has moved most of its activities from Damascus to Egypt because of the protests occurring in Syria, claiming that Egyptian authorities are no longer able to impose their sovereignty in Sinai. Arabic here
