Palestinian airport to open by mid-november

Director General of the Palestinian civil aviation authority, Salam Abu Halib, said on Sunday that the Palestinian airport in Gaza, named "Arafat Airport," would open in the first half on November.

Palestinian Radio quoted Abu Halib as saying that president Yasser Arafat's plane would be the first to land at the airport.

He said invitations were extended to Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Germany, Holland and Spain to take part in the inauguration of the airport and operate flights.

So far, the Palestinian airways operated three passenger planes from the Egyptian airport of Al-Arish in the sinai peninsula.

Differences between the Palestinian government and Israel over the Israeli Security role in the Gaza airport delayed its operation for more than 18 months until a compromise was reached at the Wye River peace talks last month.

Of all the measures agreed at the Wye Plantation talks, the decision to authorize the opening of the airport was the most significant due to its symbol of sovereignty and its economic importance for Gaza and the self-rule territories.