Egypt sends supplies to begin reconstruction in Gaza
Cairo: Egypt has sent a convoy of engineers and construction equipment to begin reconstruction in the Palestinian siege following the recent Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This was reported by Egyptian state television on Friday.
Television footage showed dozens of bulldozers, cranes, and trucks carrying Egyptian flags lined the border to enter the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinians lined the Rafah crossing to Gaza to greet the convoy as it entered a small coastal siege.
A Palestinian border official said 50 vehicles had crossed.
"We ran away with all our money, equipment, and whatever we had to join the Palestinians in the construction work," he said. "Every Muslim and every Egyptian wants to take part in the reconstruction," Egyptian truck driver Mahmoud Ismail told Reuters in Gaza.
Palestinian Islamist rulers in Gaza erupted on May 10 over an 11-day conflict between Israel and Hamas.
Hundreds of Israeli airstrikes in Gaza have killed more than 250 Palestinians. Rockets fired by Gaza militants have killed 13 people in Israel.
Egypt has played a key role in ending the ceasefire between the two countries and has said it will allocate 500 500 million to rebuild devastated areas in Gaza.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qasim on Friday reiterated the group's praise of Egypt's involvement in reconstruction efforts.
Gaza's Ministry of Housing said 1,500 housing units were destroyed during the fighting, 1,500 housing units were damaged beyond repair and 17,000 were partially damaged. A ministry official estimated the cost of reconstruction at $ 150 million.
Egypt opened the Rafah crossing in February until further notice after the Palestinian faction moved towards reconciliation after talks in Cairo.
Earlier, the crossing was open for only a few days at a time so that stranded passengers could pass.
There are about 2 million Palestinians in the 365-square-kilometer Gaza Strip controlled by Hamas. The Israeli-led blockade has banned the movement of people and goods for years
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