Britain to give 19 million pounds to Gaza

June 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Britain on Sunday announced it was giving 19 million pounds for refugees in Gaza and repeated calls for Israel to lift its blockade of the territory.

“The humanitarian situation in Gaza is both unacceptable and unsustainable,” International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell said announcing the funds, which will help support schools and health clinics for Gazan refugees.

The money is part of a five-year, 100-million-pound agreement signed with the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) in 2006.

Confirmation of this year’s contribution comes amid renewed concern about Israel’s blockade of Gaza following a deadly raid by Israeli commandos on an aid ship bound for the Palestinian territory earlier this week.

“There is an immediate need for unfettered access to Gaza if the humanitarian situation is to be improved, to allow the economy to get back on its feet, and to give the young people of Gaza the prospect of a better future,” Mitchell said.

“I call on the government of Israel to open the crossings to help end this humanitarian crisis.”

About 70 per cent of Gazans depend on UNRWA for healthcare, education and other basic services, British officials say.

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EU envoys to meet on storming of Gaza ship

June 1, 2010 By Leave a Comment

May 31 (Reuters) – European Union governments’ envoys to Brussels will meet on Monday to discuss Israel’s storming of aid ships headed for the Gaza Strip, a spokesman for the executive European Commission said.

“EU ambassadors have called a special meeting in Brussels,” the spokesman told a news briefing.

The EU has called for an enquiry into deaths aboard the ships and urged Israel to allow the free flow of humanitarian aid into the Palestinian territory. (Reporting by Justyna Pawlak, Editing by Timothy Heritage)

(timothy.heritage@reuters.com; +32 2 287 8632; Reuters Messaging: timothy.heritage.reuters.com@reuters.net))

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Egypt prevents Hamas member from crossing into Gaza with cash

March 18, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Egypt prevents Hamas member from crossing into Gaza with cash Rafah, Egypt – Egyptian security forces on Tuesday prevented a member in the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas from crossing into the Gaza Strip carrying some 850,000 dollars in cash, according to an Egyptian security source.

The member, who was not named, was among the delegates leaving Egypt via the Rafah border crossing following the conclusion of a first round of the Cairo-hosted intensive reconciliation talks between rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah.

He was carrying 260,000 dollars and 454,000 euros, the source said.

An customs official at the Rafah crossing confirmed the incident, adding that the Hamas official and the money were still in Egypt.

Last month, senior Hamas member Ayman Taha was also prevented from crossing into Gaza via Rafah when border guards found around 12 million dollars in his bags.

Taha was allowed back into Gaza after he deposited the money at a bank the north Sinai town of al-Arish.

The Palestinian territory has a shortage of cash caused by the Israeli blockade which has been imposed on Gaza since Hamas seized it in June 2007.

Israel complains that Hamas smuggles money and weapons through Egypt into the enclave. (dpa)

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Islamists blast Egypt for denying entry of Jordan activists to Gaza

March 18, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Islamists blast Egypt for denying entry of Jordan activists to Gaza Amman – The Islamic Action Front (IAF), Jordan’s largest political party, on Tuesday rebuked Egypt for denying entry to the Gaza Strip for a Jordanian delegation of parliamentarians and politicians.

“Preventing Jordanian parliamentarians from entering the Gaza Strip represents an offence to the Jordanian government, parliament and people,” IAF Secretary General Zaki Bani Ershaid said in a statement.

“By doing so, the Egyptian regime puts itself in direct confrontation with not only the besieged Palestinian people but also with all peoples aspiring for lifting the Gaza blockade,” he added.

Jordanian media said that a delegation of 17 Jordanian lawmakers and politicians was stranded at the Rafah crossing since Sunday and prevented from entering the battered Palestinian territory to express solidarity with Gazans.

Bani Ershaid urged the Jordanian government to step in with a “serious effort” to convince the Egyptian authorities to allow the Jordanian activists to enter the Gaza Strip, which was the scene for a 22-day Israeli attack at the end of December and in January. (dpa)

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