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
Controversial Israeli minister enters area around Al-Aqsa Mosque on first Friday of Ramadan
- Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir is seen making provocative remarks directed at Palestinians in presence of Israeli police
- It comes amid heightened Israeli security and restrictions on Palestinians entering the mosque, despite which an estimated 80,000 people attend first Friday prayers of the holy month
JERUSALEM: Israel’s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, entered the area around Al-Aqsa Mosque on Friday, coinciding with the first Friday prayers of Ramadan.
Footage shared on social media showed him arriving through the Moroccan Gate, accompanied by the Israeli police commissioner, Daniel Levy, and the Jerusalem District police commander, Avshalom Peled.
Ben-Gvir was seen making provocative remarks directed at Palestinians in the presence of Israeli police officers, the Palestinian Wafa news agency reported.
The Moroccan Gate, located near Al-Buraq Wall, is one of the main entrances to Al-Aqsa and has been under Israeli control since 1967. It is regularly used by Israeli forces and settlers to access the mosque compound.
Jerusalem Governorate said the minister’s actions came amid heightened Israeli security measures and tighter restrictions on Palestinian in occupied Jerusalem during Ramadan.
Despite this, an estimated 80,000 worshippers attended the first Friday prayers of Ramadan at Al-Aqsa Mosque, according to figures provided by the Islamic Waqf Department in Jerusalem.
From early in the morning, Israeli forces imposed strict controls on Palestinians traveling from the West Bank to Jerusalem. Dozens of elderly worshippers were reportedly turned back at the Qalandia and Bethlehem checkpoints after being told they lacked the necessary permits.
Security forces also briefly detained four paramedics and disrupted the work of journalists and medical teams at Qalandia, witnesses said.
Additional security measures were also enforced at entrances to Jerusalem’s Old City and the gates of Al-Aqsa, with young men subjected to identity checks and a number of worshippers denied access.
