BICOM

The Cypriot government has confirmed reports that they are considering an Israeli request to receive Gaza bound ships, either through the use of an existing port or the construction of a special pier.

Government spokesman Prodromos Prodromou said the idea is not new but is being re-examined and that “there will be contacts between the government and all interested parties in the region and, possibly, a decision will be taken”.

The initiative came from the Israeli Navy and recommends that ships bound for the Gaza Strip unload their cargo in a port in Cyprus for Israeli security inspection and then be re-loaded onto other ships that will sail to the Gaza Strip under the supervision of Israeli Naval vessels.

A senior officer in the Israeli Navy said: “We won’t be playing roulette, there’s destructive potential in transport by sea, and security will prevail over all other considerations.”

Defence Minister Lieberman is supporting the plan but has conditioned its implementation on Hamas returning the remains of two Israeli soldiers and releasing the two Israeli civilians held captive in Gaza. Israel currently maintains an UN-approved naval and aerial blockade of Gaza for security reasons and all Gaza-bound goods that arrive by sea are sent to Ashdod and trucked to the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza.

UN Special Envoy to the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday to discuss increasing the UN’s capacity and presence in Gaza to facilitate various humanitarian projects, including upgrading and rebuilding the electricity grid and water infrastructure.

A a barrage of missiles were fire at southern Israel last night after the Israeli military targeted the car of a Hamas operative believed to be involved in the launching of lying firebombs and explosives into Israel.

The IDF said that 12 missiles were fired toward communities near the Gaza border adding that three missiles were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defence system.

The IDF also confirmed that “an aircraft and IDF tank targeted a vehicle belonging to a Hamas operative launching explosive balloons from the Gaza Strip into Israel, as well as two observation posts belonging to Hamas in the northern Gaza Strip”.