Jerusalem has rejected a proposed visit to the Gaza Strip by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Israel’s Kan public broadcaster reported on Tuesday.
Egypt had agreed to allow Abbas to enter Gaza via the Rafah border crossing but demanded that Israel approve the visit, which it did not.
An Arab diplomat from a country in the region confirmed to Kan that Ramallah had appealed to Israel and Egypt to assist with the visit.
According to the source, Egypt is ready to open the Rafah crossing to Abbas because it wants to strengthen its presence in Gaza and prepare for the P.A. to control the territory after the war, including the Gaza side of the crossing.
A senior P.A. official in Ramallah told Kan last month that an official request had also been submitted to Israel for Abbas to enter the Strip via one of the Israeli crossings, at Erez or Kerem Shalom.
The P.A. leader has not visited Gaza since Hamas violently seized control of the enclave in 2007.