Jordan mediates return of Palestinian pilgrims (Roundup)

Dec 28, 2007, 20:37 GMT

Amman - About 2,200 Palestinian pilgrims left Jordan's Red Sea port of Aqaba to the Egyptian port of Nuwaibe Friday after the Jordanian government obtained Egypt's approval to allow them to return to the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing point, an official spokesman said.

The move allows the pilgrims - mostly affiliated with the radical Hamas group - to avoid the Israeli-controlled Karm Abu Salm post on their return, where they worried they could be arrested.

'The diplomatic efforts conducted by the Foreign Ministry has borne fruit after the Egyptian authorities agreed to allow the Palestinians to return home through the Rafah border post, from where they travelled' to Saudi Arabia to perform Haj rituals, the official Petra news agency quoted a senior official as saying.

'The Palestinian pilgrims have already left Aqaba to Nuwaibe aboard the ships,' the official said.

The pilgrims have been stranded at Aqaba for the past few days after the Egyptian government rejected their request to return to the Gaza Strip through the Rafah border post.

The Egyptian authorities earlier insisted that the Palestinians should return home through Karm Abu Salem crossing point, which is controlled by Israel.

Member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, Khamis Najjar, who was among the stranded Palestinians, contended that many of the Palestinian pilgrims stood the chance of being arrested by the Israeli authorities if they returned through Karm Abu Salm post.