Gaza, March 21, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) - UN chief Ban Ki-moon crossed into the Gaza Strip on Sunday, expressing solidarity with the plight of the Palestinians and urging an end to an Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip.

Ban was making his second visit to the Gaza Strip since the 22-day Gaza War ended in January 2009 as part of a regional tour aimed at reviving the peace process.

He entered the Gaza Strip from Israel through Bait Hanoon crossing, where he was met by a small group of people waving Palestinian flags.

Ban then began touring some of the hardest-hit areas of Gaza. He was due later to inaugurate projects to build 150 homes, a flour mill and a sewage treatment plant, all of which he said were approved by Israel in recent days.

In the occupied West Bank on Saturday, the UN Secretary General had said his visit to Gaza was to show his support for Palestinians.

"I'll go to Gaza... to express my solidarity with the plight of the Palestinian people there and to underscore the need to end the blockade," Ban told reporters.

Israel tightened its blockade on Gaza after the Hamas movement seized power there in June 2007.

Ban's visit comes as part of a two-day regional tour in which he encouraged Israeli and Palestinian leaders to revive the peace process.

"We are committed to work together with the Palestinian people and help your cause to complete negotiations on a settlement of all core issues within 24 months," Ban said, following a meeting with Prime Minister of West Bank government Salam Fayyad.

Agencies

Photo: Mohammed Asad