OIC condemns attack on Palestine PM in Gaza

By Mahmut Geldi

RIYADH (AA) - The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has condemned an attack that appeared to target Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah, who paid a brief visit to the Hamas-run Gaza Strip on Tuesday.

According to the Jeddah-based OIC, the reported attack sought to disrupt “Palestinian national unity and the [inter-Palestinian] reconciliation process”.

The international Muslim body went on to call for an immediate investigation into the incident.

Earlier Tuesday, Hamdallah’s convoy struck a roadside bomb as it passed through the Gaza Strip’s Beit Hanoun district.

While the Palestinian prime minister escaped the blast unscathed, six others were reportedly injured.

No group has claimed responsibility for the bombing, which Hamdallah describes as an “assassination attempt”.

Hamdallah, accompanied by Palestinian intelligence chief Majid Faraj, arrived in the blockaded Gaza Strip Tuesday morning for an hours-long visit.

The visit comes amid ongoing Egypt-backed talks between Hamas and rival Palestinian faction Fatah, from which Hamas seized control of Gaza in 2007.