JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel said Tuesday it allowed the mother-in-law of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh into the country for medical treatment.
Maj. Guy Inbar, an Israeli spokesman, said the 68-year-old woman was allowed to enter from the Gaza Strip on Monday to receive cancer treatment at a Jerusalem hospital. A relative in Gaza confirmed she was in Israel.
The announcement followed Haniyeh’s resignation as prime minister Monday, and the formation of a new Palestinian unity government. Hamas has ruled Gaza the past seven years.
While Israel considers Hamas a terrorist group, Gaza residents — even those with ties to Hamas — are authorized to cross the border on a humanitarian basis. Last November, Haniyeh’s granddaughter received treatment in Israel for an infection in her digestive tract. She later died.
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