Deal May Reopen Border For Stranded Palestinians

By STEVEN ERLANGER The New York Times

Published: Jul 29, 2007

JERUSALEM - For seven weeks now, up to 6,000 Palestinians trying to return to their homes in the Gaza Strip have been stranded in Egypt, objects of a political struggle between the Palestinian factions of Hamas and Fatah involving both Israel and Egypt.

But there finally appears to be a deal, opposed by Hamas, to let them return, beginning with about 100 today and more to follow during the week, Palestinian, Egyptian and Israeli officials said Saturday.

The Palestinians, some of whom had gone to Egypt or elsewhere for medical care or schooling, have been stuck in Rafah, an Egyptian border town, or nearby El Arish because the border crossing between Egypt and Gaza has been shut since June 9. Several hundred, with little money, have been living in harsher conditions in the desert, cared for by international aid agencies.

The Rafah border crossing, like the separate Karni crossing for goods between Israel and Gaza, was closed because of the fierce fighting in June between Fatah and Hamas. After the Hamas rout of Fatah and takeover of Gaza, these main crossings for people, in Rafah's case, and goods, in Karni's, have been kept shut by Egypt and Israel to isolate Hamas.

The closure has had the quiet support of the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah, who fired the Hamas government and installed a new one in the West Bank led by an independent economist, Salam Fayyad, whose authority Hamas refuses to recognize.

Hamas has insisted that Egypt and Israel abide by a crossings agreement negotiated by the Bush administration and reopen Rafah and Karni.

Hamas has said it will not allow Kerem Shalom - a border crossing into Gaza on Israeli territory where Gaza, Egypt and Israel meet - to be used for people, because Israel will control who may enter or exit from Gaza.

That is how Israel wants it, however, because Hamas and its officials have been able to bring in millions of dollars with them unchecked through the Rafah crossing, even though it was monitored by European Union officials and by Israelis watching on a video link.