Israel Closes Crossing to Gazans after Rocket Attacks

File Photo: A truck carrying goods arrives at Kerem Shalom crossing in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, August 15, 2018. (Reuters)
File Photo: A truck carrying goods arrives at Kerem Shalom crossing in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, August 15, 2018. (Reuters)
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Israel Closes Crossing to Gazans after Rocket Attacks

File Photo: A truck carrying goods arrives at Kerem Shalom crossing in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, August 15, 2018. (Reuters)
File Photo: A truck carrying goods arrives at Kerem Shalom crossing in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, August 15, 2018. (Reuters)

Israel said it will close its only crossing from the Gaza Strip for workers on Sunday after fighters in the Palestinian enclave fired three rockets at the Jewish state.

"Following the rockets fired toward Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip last night, it was decided that crossings into Israel for Gazan merchants and workers through the Erez Crossing will not be permitted this upcoming Sunday," COGAT, a unit of the defense ministry responsible for Palestinian civil affairs, said in a statement on Saturday.

On Friday night, two rockets were fired from Gaza at southern Israel, with one hitting the Jewish state and the other falling short and striking near a residential building in northern Gaza, Palestinian and Israeli sources said.

Early Saturday, a third rocket was fired at Israel, the army said, with no air raid sirens activated for any of the launches.

The rockets, which follow similar attacks on Wednesday and Thursday, come as Israeli police have been clashing with Palestinian protesters at Jerusalem's flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque compound in recent days.

Israel had carried out retaliatory strikes following the earlier rocket attacks, but in an apparent desire to prevent further violence, shifted its response this time to the painful economic measure of closing Erez, implying that further rockets would extend the penalty.

"The re-opening of the crossing will be decided in accordance with a security situational assessment," COGAT added in its statement.



France Declines to Comment on Algeria’s Anger over Recognition of Morocco’s Claim over Sahara

French President Emmanuel Macron and Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. (AFP file)
French President Emmanuel Macron and Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. (AFP file)
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France Declines to Comment on Algeria’s Anger over Recognition of Morocco’s Claim over Sahara

French President Emmanuel Macron and Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. (AFP file)
French President Emmanuel Macron and Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. (AFP file)

Paris declined to comment on Algeria’s “strong condemnation” of the French government’s decision to recognize Morocco’s claim over the Sahara.

The office of the French Foreign Ministry refused to respond to an AFP request for a comment on the Algeria’s stance.

It did say that further comments could impact the trip Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is set to make to France in late September or early October.

The visit has been postponed on numerous occasions over disagreements between the two countries.

France had explicitly expressed its constant and clear support for the autonomy rule proposal over the Sahara during Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne’s visit to Morocco in February, reported AFP.

The position has helped improve ties between Rabat and Paris.

On Thursday, the Algerian Foreign Ministry expressed “great regret and strong denunciation" about the French government's decision to recognize an autonomy plan for the Western Sahara region "within Moroccan sovereignty”.

Algeria was informed of the decision by France in recent days, an Algerian foreign ministry statement added.

The ministry also said Algeria would draw all the consequences from the decision and hold the French government alone completely responsible.