web1_BLOTTER.jpg

Police: Man taken into custody following robbery

Macedonian political leaders fail to agree on election date

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — More than 1,000 Palestinian families have taken possession of new apartments as part of a large Qatari-funded housing project in the Gaza Strip. Saturday's units are the first batch of a 3,000-apartment complex that was announced when the former Qatari ruler, Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, became the first head of state to visit Hamas-ruled Gaza in 2012. Hamad City sits on dunes that were part of the former Jewish settlement of Gush Katif. They started before the Israel-Hamas war in 2014 that damaged or destroyed nearly 100,000 homes. Qatar allocated $145 million for Hamad City. The Qatari envoy overseeing the project, Mohammed al-Amadi, says Gaza needs 130,000 housing units. Ismail Haniya, the Hamas chief in Gaza, called the completion of the first stage "a historic moment."

Qatari housing project in Gaza concludes 1st stage