Egypt, Israel agreement over Rafah crossing

The Israeli defense minister Shaoul Mofaza said that both Egypt and Israel concluded an agreement over the border crossing between Egypt and Gaza.

Following his meeting with the Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo, Mofaz said that Israel agreed on the Egyptian proposal on Rafah crossing allows persons to move via this crossing.

He indicated that the crossing will be under Egyptian- Palestinian supervision and in the presence of a third party which is not defined yet and might be European or American.

He added that trucks and goods will be transferred at Kereim Shaloum crossing, situated at the crossing between Egypt's border, Gaza, and Israel, and will be constructed within two months.

The agreement came after the US secretary of state Condaleezza rice urged Israel to lessen restrictions on border crossing in Gaza, stressing the necessity of this step in order to achieve an economic revival in the sector and support for the peace process.

In a separate context, the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday in a speech before the legislative council rejected the idea of forming a new government in light of the council's demands to that.

He explained "In my opinion we have to continue with this government and after the elections we start a totally new page." Abbas also announced in his speech that the legislative elections will be held in its due time on January 25th, 2006 and will not be postponed.