US welcomes efforts of PA to assume responsibilities in Gaza

WASHINGTON - 13 October 2017: The US State Department hailed the efforts exerted by the Palestinian Authority to assume its full responsibilities in the Gaza Strip after the Palestinian rivals Fatah, Hamas have signed a reconciliation accord in Cairo on Thursday.

State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said on Friday that "We see that as potentially an important step into getting humanitarian aid in to the people who live there", al Hurra channel reported.

Nauert added that the US is going to watch those developments very closely.

Head of the PLO General Delegation to the United States, Husam Zomlot on Thursday thanked US President Donald Trump and his administration for encouraging the return of the legitimate central government to the Gaza Strip as stipulated by the reconciliation agreement.

The two main Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah came together in Cairo on Thursday to sign a reconciliation deal sponsored by Egypt.

The rivals had agreed to hand full control of the Gaza Strip to the Palestinian Authority by December 1.