Palestinians demonstrate against Gaza border closure

GAZA, Sept 1 (Reuters) Tens of thousands of Palestinians demonstrated in the southern Gaza Strip today against the closure of a border crossing with Egypt as local security forces struggled to keep the protest under control.

A teenage protester was critically wounded from shots fired by Hamas Executive Force officers trying to keep the protest under control amid tensions at the Rafah border crossing which connects the Gaza Strip with Egypt, security officials said.

The border crossing, the only direct link between Palestinians in Gaza and the outside world, has been closed since Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip from forces loyal to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in June.

Rafah was technically controlled by Abbas's forces and monitored by European Union observers before Hamas's takeover, although Israel frequently shut it down citing security grounds. The other side of the crossing is controlled by Egypt.

Last month, several thousand Palestinians who were stranded in Egypt for weeks, were allowed to return to the Gaza Strip through Israeli crossing points, which forced the returnees to travel via Israel.

Hamas rejected the deal between Israel, Abbas and Egypt to open those crossings instead of Rafah, saying it set a dangerous precedent by reducing pressure on the Jewish state to reopen Rafah any time soon.

REUTERS PY RAI2328