Reports released earlier this week said Israel had denied the entry of Qatar’s monetary aid unless it is carried through the Palestinian Authority.
Israel will allow the entry of Qatar’s monetary aid to Gaza by the end of this week, Israel Hayom reported on Wednesday, citing Palestinian sources.
“The Egyptian mediators have confirmed to us that Israel will allow the transfer of funds from Qatar to Gaza by the end of the week or at the very latest by early next week,” a senior Hamas official told the paper.
The latest remarks came shortly after reports stated that Israel has changed the way in which Qatar’s monetary aid to Gaza enters the Strip, demanding the Gulf state directly deposits all donations to the Palestinian Authority or international organisations.
Other reports also suggested that Tel Aviv has refused to allow Qatari aid into the besieged seaside territory over claims that it will go towards Hamas, which it views as a terrorist organisation.
Hamas responded by threatening to restart the Great March of Return if the aid does not enter Gaza by next week.
Qatar’s aid is being sent to help the reconstruction of Gaza following the 11-day bombardment of the city, the deadliest since 2014.
Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani pledged an additional $500 million dollars to help rebuild the Strip.
Cairo talks
Meanwhile Palestinian leaders, including Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh and a delegation from President Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah party arrived in Egypt on Tuesday for follow-up meetings on reinforcing the ceasefire with Israel.
Haniyeh and Cairo officials will also discuss ways to maintain the Qatar and Egypt-brokered truce as well as the reconstruction of Gaza.
Senior Fatah official Jibril Rajoub is also expected to meet Egyptian representatives, but it is unclear whether the Palestinian group will have direct meetings with its rival party Hamas.
Read also: Israel blocks direct entry of Qatari aid to Gaza: reports
On May 18th, Egypt also announced that it will allocate $500 million for rebuilding the Gaza strip following deadly Israeli bombardment.
Cairo has also been a key mediator between Fatah and Hamas, both of which have been involved in a long dispute since a 2006 war where more than 600 Palestinians died.
Earlier this year, Egypt hosted a two-day summit where both sides agreed on the “mechanisms” for the elections. These were later delayed due to a decision by President Mahmoud Abbas who complained of Israel’s delayed response to allow the vote to take place in East Jerusalem, the occupied West Bank and Gaza.
The legislative elections were scheduled on May 22nd this year and the presidential elections will follow on July 31, the first since 2005 and 2006 respectively.
Commenting on the possibility of reaching a Hamas-Fatah reconciliation, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh this week told Qatar media that such success goes back to the willingness of sides to make concessions.
“The success of the national reconciliation relies on good intentions…those in the Central Committee of the Fatah movement and the government want this reconciliation to take place because this rift cannot continue,” Shtayyeh told Qatar News Agency [QNA] this week during his visit to Qatar.
“There is no peace or constructive negotiation without unity politically, administratively, and financially, and the Palestinian situation cannot be in a normal state without unity,” he added.
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