Israel reopened the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip on Friday, allowing some 1,500 Palestinians to head home after being stranded for three weeks.
The first busload of Palestinians crossed from Egypt into Gaza early Friday, Palestinians said. The army confirmed it had reopened the border crossing.
The reopening is one of a series of steps Israel is undertaking in a bid to ease local and regional tensions in the territories. This is in response to U.S. pressure on Israel as expressed in public opposition to the new construction in Ma'aleh Adumim and to the obvious failure of the Sharon administration to make good on its promise to evacuate wildcat outposts in the West Bank.
Israel closed the international border crossing between Gaza and Egypt on July 19, due to intelligence reports suggesting Palestinian factions were tunneling under the crossing and planning to blow it up. During the closure period, troops conducted thorough searches in the region but no tunnel was uncovered.
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