Israel to limit Hamas MPs' movement between Gaza, West Bank

"There is no reason for Israel to grant free passes to VIP Palestinians belonging to an organisation that calls for the destruction of Israel," Amos Gilad, advisor to Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz, told public radio.

Gilad was responding to a question on whether MPs elected to represent the radical Islamist movement in Gaza would be able to travel to the West Bank, in particular Ramallah, the headquarters of the Palestinian parliament.

Gilad said Saturday that should Hamas's exiled supreme leader Khaled Meshaal try to return to the Palestinian territories he would be "arrested immediately should he enter a zone under Israeli control".

The defence official did not, however, indicate what would happen if Meshaal were to travel to Gaza through the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, which is controlled by Palestinian and Egyptian security forces.

Palestinian newspaper Al-Quds reported on Friday that contacts were underway between Meshaal and the Palestinian administration, as well as the European Union, to "facilitate his return to Gaza" following Hamas's election triumph.

Meshaal lives in Syria and is one of Israel's most-wanted men. He survived an assassination bid by Mossad agents in Jordan in 1997.

But one senior official in the prime minister's office was more circumspect on the question of freedom of movement for Palestinian MPs.

"We will judge on a case by case basis. Those who are directly implicated in terrorism cannot travel. For the others we will see," said the official.

Israel has previously banned Fatah MPs from Gaza whom it believes were implicated in "terrorist activities" from travelling to Ramallah.

"They were obliged to take part in parliamentary debates through a video-link up," the official added.

Asked about Meshaal, the source said "any terrorist who moves around does so at his own risk and peril".

Source

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