Solana urges Israel to open Gaza border

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana begins the second day of his six-day visit to the Middle East today (26 October), with a bid to avert Palestinian economic collapse.

Solana is to press Israel’s leaders to reopen the country to exports from Gaza, to alleviate the dire humanitarian situation in the occupied territories.

The EU is pressing Israel to allow the re-opening of the Karni crossing in eastern Gaza, under EU control.

Karni is the main route for Gazan exports into Israel, but has been closed sporadically because of Israeli security concerns. It has frequently come under attack from Palestinian militants.

Israel says the crossing is one of the main routes for suicide bombers, arms and explosive devices to enter Israel.

But according to estimates made by the Israel-based Peres Center for Peace, each day that Karni is closed costs the Palestinian economy around €480,000.

The EU is already monitoring the Rafah border crossing, between Gaza and Egypt, and has said it is willing to play a role at Karni.

From Israel, Solana will travel on to the Palestinian territories where he will meet President Mahmoud Abbas. There he will push for the establishment of a coalition government between the incumbent Hamas and Abbas’s Fatah movement.

On Friday (27 October), Solana will travel to Lebanon for talks on how the EU can help boost security in the country through security sector reform, demining and border monitoring.

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana begins the second day of his six-day visit to the Middle East today (26 October), with a bid to avert Palestinian economic collapse.