CAIRO: The Hamas-run Interior Ministry in the Gaza Strip said it has stepped up patrols on the territory’s southern border after a suicide bomber blew himself up Thursday morning while trying to cross into Egypt.
“Security forces stopped two persons who approached the border. One of them blew himself up and was killed. The other was wounded,” the ministry said in a statement.
Several Hamas security personnel were injured, and hospital officials said one of them died of his wounds.
Security sources quoted by Reuters said the suicide bomber was a member of a Salafi group that is a rival to Hamas.
A Hamas official speaking to Arab News avoided calling the assailant a member of a Salafi group based in Gaza, referring to him as “a person of deviant ideology.” The term is occasionally used by Hamas to describe Daesh members and other extremists.
“We condemn this hideous crime committed against our security forces by outlaws,” said Mosheer Al-Masry.
“We offer our condolences to the family of the martyred security victim, and we vow not to allow anyone to harm the security of our people in Gaza,” he added. “Our people reject deviant thoughts, which don’t serve our just Palestinian cause.”
There was no immediate claim of responsibility. It is the first time Hamas has been targeted in a suicide attack.
Egypt on Thursday opened the Rafah border crossing, Gaza’s main outlet to the outside world, for a fourth day to allow Muslims to embark on the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.
While Cairo has not yet commented on the suicide attack, some Egyptian analysts link it to the opening of the Rafah crossing.
“There’s a correlation that suggests that attacks near our borders increase whenever the Rafah crossing is open,” said Mohammed Noureddine, a former deputy of Egypt’s interior minister.
“Hamas beefed up border security in coordination with Egyptian authorities in an attempt to strengthen ties with Egypt,” he told Arab News.
“Despite the attack, Egyptian authorities won’t go back on the decision to open the border crossing in both directions for humanitarian cases.”
Hamas has sought to secure Gaza’s borders in order to improve relations with neighboring Egypt, which is battling a Daesh affiliate in the Sinai Peninsula bordering Gaza. Hamas has largely observed a truce with Israel since the 2014 Gaza war.
Hamas guard killed in rare suicide attack in Gaza Strip
Hamas guard killed in rare suicide attack in Gaza Strip
Jordan’s king stresses need to preserve Christian presence in Middle East
- King Abdullah II holds talks with religious leaders in Amman
LONDON: King Abdullah II of Jordan emphasized the importance of preserving a Christian presence in the Middle East on Monday during talks with religious leaders.
In meetings at Al-Husseiniya Palace with Patriarch John X of Antioch and All the East and Archimandrite Metodije of the Serbian Orthodox Church, the king called for an end to the violation of Muslim and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem by Israel, which he said was seeking to change the historical and legal status quo, the Petra news agency reported.
The king reaffirmed Jordan’s religious and historical role in protecting holy sites under its Hashemite Custodianship.
Crown Prince Hussein, Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad, the king’s chief adviser for religious and cultural affairs, Alaa Batayneh, director of the Office of His Majesty, and Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos III also joined the talks, the report said.
King Abdullah stressed the need for all parties to adhere to the agreement to end the war in Gaza, ensure the flow of aid and prevent escalations in the occupied West Bank.
