Israeli proposal to run Rafah for six more months rejected: Shaath

Palestinian Deputy Prime Minister Nabil Shaath said on Wednesday that an Israeli proposal to run the Rafah crossing for six more months was rejected.

Shaath told reporters that the Palestinian and Egyptian sides rejected the proposal in the wake of an Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.

"The Palestinian and the Egyptian sides are working together to facilitate passengers traveling via Rafah crossing without any Israeli supervision," said Shaath.

Rafah, located on the Egyptian-Gaza border, is the only exit for Palestinians in the strip to travel abroad.

It is currently still controlled by Israel, which plans to hand over it to Egypt after the pullout completes.

The Israeli parliament is expected to approve a government decision to allow the deployment of 750 Egyptian border guards at the crossing on Wednesday.

Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman is scheduled to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon later in the day on the issue of the Rafah crossing.

Source: Xinhua