Ma'an – The Palestinian cabinet announced on Monday that the Palestinian security services have recently disbanded several armed groups affiliated to Hamas, who were planning to cause chaos in the West Bank during the Annapolis conference. In a press conference, following the weekly cabinet meeting, Information Minister Dr Riyad Al-Maliki, said that Hamas groups were rated as active and inactive and that the Palestinian Authority has details of Hamas activists, as well as weapons possessed by the various Hamas groups.He warned that Hamas in the Gaza Strip plans to force the pilgrims travelling to Mecca for the Hajj to leave through the Rafah crossing into Egypt. He said this step is meant to embarrass both the Palestinian and the Egyptian governments. Al-Maliki said that the Palestinian Authority had agreed with the Israelis that pilgrims from the Gaza Strip will leave for Saudi Arabia through Jordan.
Al-Maliki also refuted Hamas' allegations that there are patients in the Gaza Strip, who are suffering from kidney failure and do not have access to the necessary medical treatment. He added that there are 66 kidney dialysis machines in the Gaza Strip. He said that with 13 new machines, the number would be enough to cover both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. He blamed Hamas for that closure of the Erez Crossing, saying they had dug several tunnels near the crossing which has led the Israeli authorities to close it.
Al-Maliki also criticized the Israeli government for not implementing the decision to export flowers and strawberries from the Gaza Strip, as they had promised last week.