Hamas to 'allow Fatah members to return to Gaza'

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Hamas will allow twenty Fatah members who fled Gaza during fighting in 2007 to return to the coastal enclave, a Fatah official said Sunday.

Jamal Ubeid, a member of Fatah's high committee in Gaza, told Ma'an that the party had been officially informed about the decision by Hamas, although a list of names has not yet been received.

Earlier Sunday, Gaza's interior ministry spokesman Islam Shahwan told Ma'an that Fatah members who had fled to Egypt would be allowed to return to the Gaza Strip.

"Fatah supporters will return to Gaza on Monday via the Rafah crossing after they complete legal procedures, and nobody will harass them at any rate," Shahwan said. Around 400 Fatah members fled the Gaza Strip during 2007 fighting with Hamas and 56 party affiliates are in Gaza's jails for political reasons, a Fatah official said this week. more

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