Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Wednesday that the isolation of Gaza, which is controlled by Hamas, from the rest of the Palestinian territories "is temporary and should end soon."
Abbas made the remarks at a joint news conference held with visiting Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
"The isolation of Gaza was a result of (Hamas) coup and it will end soon. We are keen to keep sending aid and support to the people of Gaza because we are fully responsible for them," said Abbas.
Earlier on Wednesday, Aso and Prime Minister Salam Fayyad of the Abbas-appointed caretaker government signed an agreement, in which Japan pledged to pay 20 U.S. million dollars as urgent direct support to the Palestinian National Authority (PNA).
"The 20-million-dollar Japanese fund would be divided into 11 million dollar direct aid to the PNA and 9 million dollar to be sent through the United Nations as humanitarian aid to the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip," Aso told reporters.
Israel had tightened its closure and isolated the whole Gaza Strip from the rest of the Palestinian territories, after the Islamic Hamas movement defeated Abbas' security forces and controlled the whole enclave in mid June.
"I call on Hamas movement to undo its mistakes and change its position by returning back to unity, in order to flourish the people's hope for a better future," Abbas told reporters.
The Palestinian news agency Wafa quoted officials at Abbas headquarters in Ramallah as saying that Abbas received from Aso an official invitation to visit Japan, but the date of the visit was not decided yet.
Source: Xinhua
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article