Hamas delegation in Egypt

A delegation from Palestinian outfit Hamas headed by Dr Mahmoud Zahar visited Egypt on Saturday evening through the Rafah crossing in order to discuss the Israeli escalation in the Gaza Strip, which has killed 18 since Friday evening. A security source said that Zahar and the delegation arrived in Egypt to conduct talks regarding expediting the introduction of fuel to Gaza and to discuss the reconciliation file in addition to the recent Israeli escalation in Gaza. Egypt is considered the main sponsor of the reconciliation between rival Palestinian factions, chiefly Fatah and Hamas, in addition to being the permanent sponsor of the truce between the factions and Israel. In the meantime, Dr Ghazi Hamad, Undersecretary of the Foreign Ministry of the Gaza government, conducted a meeting with the Undersecretary of the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs and staff from the Ministry of Housing in Gaza to present files on the reconstruction of Gaza. This followed a meeting last month between the Prime Minister of Gaza Ismail Haniyeh with the Emir of Qatar who pledged support for the reconstruction of Gaza.